Ambassador (ret.) Joachim Ruecker is a Senior Advisor at ASG, where he advises clients on matters related to management and compliance; special economic zones (SEZs); sustainable development zones; migration, urbanization, and development; and other issues. He has broad experience in diplomacy, economic policy, human rights, local governance, public infrastructure, and the structuring of utilities in the energy sector and beyond.   

Ambassador Ruecker has worked as an independent consultant, including for governments and international organizations. Until 2017, he was the Special Representative of the Federal Government of Germany for the Middle East Stability Partnership, where he helped implement the “Jordan Compact,” a project combining SEZs in Jordan with new job opportunities for Jordanian citizens and Syrian refugees. 

Previously, he served as Germany’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva, President of the U.N. Human Rights Council, Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary-General and U.N. Interim Administrator in Kosovo, Inspector-General of the German Foreign Office, and as Germany’s Ambassador to Sweden. His service in Kosovo included responsibility for economic reconstruction, involving comprehensive programs for privatization, re-structuring public enterprises, and helping lay the foundations for a functioning market economy, including through the creation of industrial parks and SEZs.   

Earlier in his career, Ambassador Ruecker served as Mayor of the industrial city of Sindelfingen, Germany for almost a decade. During his term, the city joined the Climate Alliance of European municipalities and restructured its utilities to minimize carbon emissions.

He holds a PhD in economics from the University of Freiburg and, more recently, has been teaching macroeconomics and foreign trade at the Nuertingen-Geislingen University. He speaks English, French, German, and conversational Swedish.

Ambassador Ruecker is based in Stuttgart, Germany.