on Human Rights. In addition to his committee assignments, he was a member of the Parliament's delegation for relations with the People's Republic of China. Together with Judge Andrée Ruffo, Kouchner established the International Bureau for Children's Rights (IBCR), a non-governmental organization based in Montreal, in 1994. Minister of Health, 1997–1999 When Lionel Jospin became Prime Minister in 1997, Kouchner became Minister of Health for the second time. He held the office until 1999. UN Representative in Kosovo, 1999–2001 On 15 July 1999, pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1244, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan nominated Kouchner as the second UN Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). During 18 months, he led UN efforts to create a new civil administration and political system replacing the Serbian ones, and to rebuild the economy shattered by the Kosovo War. Thus, municipal councils were elected at local level by the end of 2000. He was replaced on 21 January 2001 by Danish Social Democrat Hans Hækkerup. Later, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Pristina for his services to Kosovo. Minister of Health, 2001–2002 Kouchner became at this time Minister of Health for the third time, until the 2002 elections. Candidate for UN positions In 2005, Kouchner was a candidate for the position of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), but lost the appointment in favor of former Portuguese Prime Minister, António Guterres, who was nominated by then-UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. In 2006, Kouchner was also a candidate to become Director-General of the World Health Organization. He lost before the final election round, and (Hong Kong) Chinese candidate Margaret Chan was later elected. In 2007, the European Commission appointed Kouchner as its representative on the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP), a group of individuals nominated by international donor countries and the government of Sri Lanka, vested with a wide mandate to observe all investigations and inquiries conducted by and on behalf of the Commission of Inquiry into alleged human rights abuses in Sri Lanka. Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2007–2010 After the election of Nicolas Sarkozy as President of France in 2007, Kouchner was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs in Prime Minister François Fillon's government, even though Kouchner supported Sarkozy's Socialist rival Ségolène Royal during the campaign. He has since been expelled from the Socialist Party for his acceptance of the