Bernard Émié

{{Short description|French diplomat (born 1958)}}

{{Infobox Officeholder

| honorific-suffix = {{postnominals|country=AUS|size=100%|KCVO}}

| name= Bernard Émié

| office= French Ambassador to Algeria

| image= Bernard Emié 19 March 2013.jpg

| image_width=

| order=

| ambassador_from=

| country=

| term_start= 1 August 2014

| term_end= 26 June 2017

| predecessor= André Parant

| successor= Xavier Driencourt

| president=

| office1= French Ambassador to the United Kingdom

| image1=

| image_width1=

| order1=

| ambassador_from1=

| country1=

| term_start1= 2 April 2011

| term_end1= 31 July 2014

| predecessor1= Maurice Gourdault-Montagne

| successor1= Sylvie Bermann

| president1= (1) Nicolas Sarkozy;
(2) François Hollande

| birth_date= {{birth date and age|df=yes|1958|9|6}}

| birth_place= Paris, France

| nationality= French

| spouse= Isabelle née de Chabannes La Palice de Tournon [http://www.geneall.net/F/per_page.php?id=85126 www.geneall.net]

| party=

| profession= Diplomat

| alma_mater= Sciences-Po; ÉNA

| website = [http://www.ambafrance-dz.org/ www.ambafrance-dz.org]

| footnotes=

}}

{{Politics of France}}

Bernard Émié {{post-nominals|country=GBR|KCVO}} (born 6 September, 1958) is a senior French diplomat.

Emié previously served as the director of the General Directorate for External Security (DGSE) (French: Direction générale de la sécurité extérieure), France's main external intelligence agency from June 2017 until January 2024. He was also the French ambassador in five countries (Algeria, United Kingdom, Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan) from 1998 to 2017.

Career

Emié graduated with a diploma in 1979 from Sciences Po, before going up to the École nationale d'administration (ÉNA). He joined the French Foreign Ministry as a Secretary in 1983.

He served as second secretary in New Delhi, India (1984–86), before being seconded by Jean-Bernard Raimond to the Foreign Ministry.

Emié was promoted as counsellor at the French embassy in Washington, D.C., United States, before returning to duties at the French foreign ministry as deputy director for North Africa and the Middle East.

Emié served as private secretary (1993–95) to Alain Juppé, and as minister-counsellor to President Jacques Chirac.

During the Rwanda genocide he gave the order to allow Rwanda genocide perpetrators to flee.{{cite web|last=AfricaNews|date=2021-02-17|title='French allowed Rwanda genocide perpetrators to flee'-Report|url=https://www.africanews.com/2021/02/17/french-allowed-rwanda-genocide-perpetrators-to-flee/|access-date=2021-02-27|website=Africanews|language=en}}{{Cite news|last=Samuel|first=Henry|date=2021-02-15|title=France's current spy chief 'signed order' to free top Rwanda genocide suspects, says secret cable|language=en-GB|work=The Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/02/15/frances-current-spy-chief-signed-order-free-top-rwanda-genocide/|access-date=2021-02-27|issn=0307-1235}}

In 1998, he was appointed ambassador to the Jordan and, in 2002, was given the responsibility of being France's director of North Africa and the Middle Eastern affairs. In 2004, he was appointed as French ambassador to the Lebanon.

Emié served as ambassador to Turkey from 2007 until 2011 and as French ambassador to London from 2011 until 2014, before being posted as French ambassador to Algeria.

He was the head of the DGSE, the French foreign intelligence agency, from June 2017 until his replacement in January 2024.{{Cite news |date=2023-12-20 |title=Macron ally to lead France's DGSE foreign intelligence service |url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20231220-domestic-security-boss-becomes-france-s-top-spook |access-date=2024-06-29 |work=France 24}}

Personal life

Bernard Emié, of Belgian descent, married on 30 September 1989 Isabelle, only daughter of François de Chabannes (marquis de La Palice de Tournon),{{Cite web|url=http://www.william1.co.uk/b30.htm|title=Brittany 30|website=www.william1.co.uk}} by whom he has two daughters (Constance & Pauline) and one son (Louis).

Honours and decorations

References

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