Born in Lisbon in 1968, the new Portuguese ambassador to Serbia studied law at Lisbon’s Universidade Católica Portuguesa, graduating in 1990, before joining his country’s diplomatic service and serving in the Portuguese MFA’s General Department of European Affairs and the General Department of European Communities from 1991-’97.
His first foreign posting took him to the Embassy of Portugal in Pretoria, South Africa (1997-2001), after which he served at the Portuguese Representation to the European Union in Brussels (2001-‘05).
Returning to the Ministry in Lisbon, he held various senior advisory and directorial positions from 2006 to 2009, when he was appointed Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Portugal to Brazil (2009-‘13) and subsequently served as General Consul of Portugal in Boston, USA, from 2013-’18. Returning home, he held the post of Executive Director of the North South Centre of the Council of Europe from 2018-’20.
Prior to his arrival in Belgrade, Ambassador Velez Caroço – a married father of two adult children – served from 2000 as ambassador of Portugal to Guinea-Bissau.
