Emil Brix - Austrian diplomat and historian, is the Director of the Diplomatische Akademie Wien - Vienna School of International Studies since 2017. After joining the Austrian diplomatic service in 1982, Mr Brix worked as political secretary for the parliamentary group of the Austrian People’s Party. In 1986, he was appointed Head of Cabinet at the Ministry of Science and Research. From 1990 until 1995, Mr Brix served as Austrian Consul General in Cracow, Poland. Subsequently, he was Director of the Austrian Cultural Institute in London, a position he held for four years. In 2002, Mr Brix was appointed Director-General of Foreign Cultural Policy at the Ministry for European and International Affairs of Austria. After serving five years as the Austrian Ambassador to the UK, he became Austrian Ambassador to the Russian Federation in 2015. He holds a PhD from the University of Vienna and was awarded Dr. hc. by the University of Drohobytsch, Ukraine and by the University of Cluj-Napoca, Romania. He is an alumnus of the Diplomatische Akademie Wien and published numerous books and articles on Austrian and European history of the 19^th and 20^th century.