Former Ambassador Livia Leu Agosti honoured

In 2010, while serving as Swiss ambassador to Tehran, Livia Leu Agosti (far right) provided support to the mothers of three Americans jailed in Iran Keystone

Livia Leu Agosti, former Swiss Ambassador to Iran, and the Swiss foreign ministry received a 2013 Common Ground Award on Friday in Washington. They were honoured for Switzerland’s diplomatic efforts in Iran on behalf of the US.

Switzerland has represented US interests in Iran for more than 30 years, since the US and Iran broke off diplomatic relations. Leu Agosti served as Swiss Ambassador to Iran from 2009 to 2013.

The Common Ground Awards are presented annually by the Washington-based non-profit organisation Search for Common Ground “to honour outstanding accomplishments in conflict resolution, negotiation, community building, and peacebuilding. Recipients have made significant contributions toward bridging divides and finding solutions to seemingly intractable problems”.

There were four other 2013 winners: No Labels, a US Congressional coalition; the African American women’s a capella ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock; Johann Olav Koss, the founder and CEO of Right to Play; and John Hunter, educator and creator of the World Peace Game.

At the previous year’s awards, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton honoured the US ambassador to Libya, J. Christopher Stevens, who was killed in a rocket attack on the American consulate.