Lima, July 27, 2006.- Ambassador Allan Wagner Tizón resigned his position of two and a half years’ standing at the head of the Andean Community General Secretariat to assume the position of Minister of Defense in Peruvian President Alan García’s first Ministerial Cabinet.

In his letter of resignation presented to the Chairman of the Andean Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Bolivia, David Choquehuanca, the Secretary General of the CAN expressed his appreciation for the trust placed in him by, and the collaboration received from, the Andean Heads of State and Ministers during the difficult situation confronted by the Andean integration process in which he served.

“I leave this position with the satisfaction that, thanks to the will and political decision of the Member Countries, expressed at the highest level, the Andean Community’s position has stabilized and our integration process is once again gaining renewed vigor, with a view toward the forthcoming negotiation of the Association Agreement with the European Union and the consequent deepening of our integration process, together with the convergence toward the new South American Community of Nations,” he stresses in this letter.

He goes on to express his trust that the same political will will be reflected in the decision to be adopted by the CAN General Secretariat “so that it can continue to serve as a valuable supporting body for the integration process.”

Ambassador Allan Wagner Tizón, whose resignation will become effective tomorrow, July 28, assumed the position of Secretary General of the CAN on January 15, 2004, for a 5-year term, having been elected by unanimous vote at an enlarged session of the Andean Council of Foreign Ministers, held in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, in November 2003.

Born in Lima and with an impressive professional record, Allan Wagner served as Foreign Minister of Peru for two periods (from July 1985 to May 1988 and from July 2002 to December 2003), as Peruvian Ambassador to the United States, Spain and Venezuela, and as Director of Development, Special Advisor, and Permanent Observer of the Latin American Economic System (SELA), as well as in other important positions.