Javier Solana, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, is to step down from his post in October. He has held the position for ten years now and says he does not wish to serve another term.

In an interview with the Spanish newspaper ABC, Mr Solana said he was satisfied with what he had achieved in the past decade but now wishes to take things a little easier. He will be 67 this month.

During his political career, Mr Solana served as Secretary General of NATO from 1995 to 1999. As a member of the Spanish government in the 1980s and 1990s he served, in succession, as minister for Culture, Education and Foreign Affairs.

Photo by Bertelsmann Stiftung (flickr)