Kirsten Joppe has been appointed as the new head of the European Union Partnership Mission in Moldova (EUPM Moldova) and will take up the post on 25 April 2026.
Joppe, a German governance expert and international adviser, will replace Cosmin Dinescu, the Council of the EU announced on Wednesday.
She has more than 20 years of experience in peace operations and human rights, including work in election assistance and senior roles in the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Mission in Kosovo.
Joppe has also worked at Germany’s Federal Foreign Office as a country desk officer for Armenia and Azerbaijan.
She joined EUPM Moldova in November 2024 as deputy head of mission and chief of staff after spending more than six years in Ukraine.
In Ukraine, she worked for the EU Advisory Mission (EUAM) — an EU civilian mission that supports reform of the country’s civilian security sector — including as head of its Strategic Reform Component.
What EUPM Moldova does
EUPM Moldova was set up in April 2023 for an initial two-year period to support the resilience of Moldova’s security sector in crisis management and “hybrid threats”, including cybersecurity and countering foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI), according to the Council.
Its mandate has since been extended for a further two years until 31 May 2027.
The appointment was decided by the EU’s Political and Security Committee on 22 April 2026, while the mission has more than 70 permanent staff, including international and local personnel.
