Jacques Pitteloud | |
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![]() Official portrait, 2019 | |
Ambassador of Switzerland to the United States | |
Assumed office 16 September 2019 | |
President | Ueli Maurer |
Preceded by | Martin Dahinden |
Personal details | |
Born | Jacques Pitteloud 12 November 1962 Sierre, Switzerland |
Spouse | Angélique Gakoko |
Children | 1 |
Alma mater | University of Zurich |
Occupation | Diplomat, intelligence officer, foreign service officer |
Website | FDFA website |
Jacques Pitteloud (French pronunciation: [ʒak pitəlu]; born 12 November 1962) is a Swiss diplomat and former head of the Swiss Intelligence Service (FIS). He currently serves as the Ambassador of Switzerland to the United States since 2019. [1] [2] [3] He has previously served as Ambassador to Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia and the Seychelles from 2010 to 2015. [4]
Pitteloud was born 12 November 1962 in Sierre, Switzerland, to Jean-Jacques Pitteloud and Anne-Lise Pitteloud ( née Galletti). His paternal grandfather, Cyrille Pitteloud, was a member of the Grand Council of Valais from 1917 to 1928. [5] [6] He studied Law at the University of Zurich where he completed a Master's degree as well as a Doctorate in 1989. He also pursued post-graduate studies in security policy at the University of Geneva. [7] [8]
Pitteloud is married to Rwandan-born Angélique Pitteloud ( née Gakoko), who belongs to the Tutsi ethnic group, whom he met during the Rwandan genocide in 1994, when he was assigned there. [9] [10] They have one daughter. [11]