Eliasson has authored and co-authored numerous books and articles and is a frequent lecturer on foreign policy and diplomacy. Since 1988 he has been a visiting lecturer on mediation, conflict resolution and UN reform at Uppsala University.
Eliasson started his diplomatic career in 1965, when he was employed at the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. From 1982 to 1983 he served as Diplomatic Advisor to the Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme, and from 1983 to 1987 as Director General for Political Affairs in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
Eliasson condemned the 2006 Lebanon War: "The military offensive of Israel is an extremely dangerous escalation of the situation in the region". He also condemned the attacks of Hezbollah.[5]
In December 2006, then U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced Eliasson as Special Envoy to Darfur, Sudan. He left this mission in June 2008.[4]
In March 2009, Eliasson gave a lecture entitled "Armed Conflict: The Cost to Civilians" at the University of San Diego's Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice Distinguished Lecture Series.
Eliasson is an Eminent Member of the Sergio Vieira de Mello Foundation and he currently sits on the advisory board of the Alliance for Peacebuilding. Eliasson was Chair of WaterAid Sweden. Since 2010 he serves in the UN Secretary-General's Advocates Group for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Eliasson is a former Board member of DARA.
On 2 March 2012, Jan Eliasson was appointed Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. He took office as Deputy Secretary-General on 1 July 2012.[4]
He always carries in his pocket a print of the UN charter.
On 23 October 2017, the Tallberg Foundation announced that its Global Leadership Prize will henceforth be named after Jan Eliasson.[7]
On 27 April 2017, the Swedish Government appointed Jan Eliasson as Chair of the SIPRI Governing Board. Eliasson has formally assumed the position as of 1 June 2017.[8]
On 13 May 2022, Eliasson published a memoir titled Ord och Handling : ett liv i diplomatins tjänst ("Words and Action : a life in service of diplomacy").[9]
Personal life
Eliasson is married to Kerstin Eliasson, former Swedish State Secretary for Education and Science. They have three children: Anna, Emilie and Johan. He is a GAIS supporter.[10]