UN Secretary-General- Designate Ban Ki-moon named on Sunday Vijay Nambiar of India as his chief of staff and Michelle Montas of Haiti as his spokesperson.

"I have known Mr. Nambiar for a long time and we share deep confidence and respect for each other," Ban said in a statement.

"Mr. Nambiar has held many important roles in and around the United Nations, including, among others, special advisor to Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the permanent representative of India to the United Nations," Ban said.

Before coming to the United Nations, Nambiar served as deputy national security advisor in India.

Montas, who served as the spokesperson for the UN General Assembly president in 2003, currently heads the French unit of UN Radio.

Sunday's appointments "will serve as a solid basis for establishing my team and pursuing a program of reform of the Secretariat to provide continuity along with change," said Ban, who officially takes over from Annan on Monday as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations.

Source: Xinhua