Ambassador Franz Jessen is a Non-resident Fellow at the Taiwan Center for Security Studies. He has previously been a MOFA Fellow.

Franz holds degrees from Odense University and Virgina Tech, where he completed his Ph.D. under the supervision of professors Buchanan and Tullock.

After a brief academic career, Franz began working for the European Commission, where he received postings to Japan and China. He later served with the EEAS as the Head of Division for China, Macau, Taiwan, and Mongolia, and as the EU Ambassador for Vietnam (2011-2015) and the Philippines (2015-2019).