Vendrell got a Bachelor's degree in law at the
University of Barcelona, continued studying at
King's College in London and graduated in modern history at the
University of Cambridge. He became director of the Academy of International Law in
The Hague in 1979. In 1968 he joined the diplomatic corps of the
UN, where he was appointed head of the documentation services of the general secretariat for Europe and America from 1987 to 1992. Among other positions in the high body, he has been the personal
representative of the
Secretary-General of the United Nations in the peace processes of
El Salvador and
Nicaragua (1989–1991),
Guatemala (1990–1992) and
East Timor (1999). He has participated in diplomatic missions to the
Caucasus (1992) and
Haiti (1993), and was director of the political affairs division for East Asia and the Pacific (1993–1997) and of the combined Asia-Pacific division (1998–1999). In 1999 he was appointed head of the UN Secretary-General's Office for Political Affairs in Asia, the Pacific, America and Europe. From 2000 to 2002, he headed the UN special mission to Afghanistan (
UNSMA), and was later appointed representative of the European Union. In 2002 he received the
Creu de Sant Jordi Award by the
Government of Catalonia. Between 2002 and September 2008 he was appointed by the European Union as its Special Representative for Afghanistan. During the academic year of 2008-2009, he was visiting professor at the
Woodrow Wilson School. Afterwards, he worked as an adjunct professor at the School for Advanced International Studies (SAIS),
Johns Hopkins University, Bologna campus. == Awards ==