EUBAM Core values
Who we are
EUBAM is comprised of approximately 100 seconded and contracted staff mostly from EU member States, and more than 120 staff from Moldova and Ukraine. Experts from EU countries typically have backgrounds in the border guard, customs service or police forces in their home countries; many are seconded by their governments to serve for periods in the Mission.
As professionals committed to supporting the partner services of the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine and as ambassadors of the European Union, all EUBAM personnel adhere to the Mission’s core values of neutrality, partnership, reliability, results, service and transparency.
Most of EUBAM’s senior management, heads of sections, and administrative staff work from the Mission headquarters in Odessa, a port city in southern Ukraine. The majority of seconded border and customs experts, meanwhile, are based in one of the six field offices in the Mission’s Area of Responsibility (AoR): three in Ukraine, and three in Moldova (see field office profiles below). In addition, the Mission now has a Liaison Office in Chisinau, Moldova.
Head of EUBAM
Mr Udo Burkholder has held the position of Head of Mission since 18 May 2010. He served as acting Head of Mission from 1 January 2010 and Deputy Head of EUBAM from January 2008. Prior to this he accrued 30 years of experience within the Border Guard and Federal Police of Germany.
Mr Burkholder graduated from Johannes Gutenberg University, Faculty of Law. He served in the army from 1967-1968, his departing rank being Lieutenant. After having participated in sixteen military exercises and military operations, he was promoted to Captain of the Reserve.
He began working for the Federal Police of Germany in 1978 and held several positions before being appointed Head of the Federal Police Human Resources Department at the Ministry of Interior in 1991. From 1995-1997 he served as Head of the Border Police at Frankfurt Airport and from 1997-2000 was re-appointed as Head of the Federal Police Human Resources Department at the Ministry of Interior. From 2000-2001 he was Head of the Border Police Command for Central Germany and on April 1, 2001 he was promoted to the position of Inspekteur der Bundespolizei (Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Police). He retired from this post on 31 December 2007.
Deputy Head of Mission:
Mr Slawomir Pichor was appointed Deputy Head of the European Union Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine on 1 October 2010.
Mr Pichor served 17 years in the Polish Customs Service where he held several senior managerial positions. Mr Pichor was the Deputy Chief of the Polish Customs Service, responsible for 15,000 officers, from 2004-2006. He holds the rank of Chief Superintendent which is classed as General Officer equal to Brigadier General.
General Pichor was educated in Poland. He holds a Diploma in Public Administration from Warsaw University, a Diploma in Foreign Trade of Warsaw School of Economics and Master of Science Degree in Transport of Technical University of Radom. For his service he was honoured with the Silver Cross for the Achievements for the Republic of Poland and the Medal for the Achievements for the Police.
© 2005-2010. European Union Border Assistance Mission
The views expressed on this site do not necessarily reflect the views of European Commission
The views expressed on this site do not necessarily reflect the views of European Commission
The United Nations Development Programme is the implementing partner
EUBAM is an EU Mission fully funded by the European Union