Enjoying a joke with the President

The Bureau met once again this afternoon. Like many standing bodies, the Bureau’s work divides into routine tasks (formal adoption of the draft agenda of the plenary session, for example) and more political discussions, with the latter dividing into internal and external matters. Today, beyond the routine tasks, the Bureau concentrated more on internal affairs. Though lengthier than usual, the meeting went very well. The President, Staffan Nilsson (sharing a joke in the picture), has a particularly witty sense of humor that can defuse tensions. Today’s meeting was by no means tense, but this was in no small part because the President’s well-placed humorous interventions kept everybody in a good mood.