The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alberto van Klaveren, reported that President Gabriel Boric has appointed the following career diplomats as Chilean ambassadors abroad: Patricio Aguirre, in Kenya; Julio Bravo, in Romania; Manahi Pakarati, in New Zealand, and Tamara Villanueva, in Singapore.
With these appointments, the appointment for the Chilean embassy in the United Kingdom is still pending. Last week, it was learned that the Government was awaiting approval for the nomination of the former Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, Ximena Fuentes, to take office. This, after the resignation of Susana Herrera in August 2023, due to complaints of workplace harassment and controversies in project management with the Regional Government of Biobío.
The Government detailed the diplomatic credentials of the new ambassadors:
Patricio Aguirre
He is a lawyer from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and a graduate of the Andrés Bello Diplomatic Academy. He has a master’s degree in International Relations from the Matías Romero Institute in Mexico City and Master’s studies in Mining Law from the University of Chile.
Abroad, he was part of the Permanent Mission of Chile to the United Nations for more than 10 years. Likewise, he served as Consul in Haiti and Switzerland.
In Chile, he was deputy director of the Multilateral Division and the International and Human Security Division of the Foreign Ministry. Previously, he was head of the Bolivia Unit and member of the group of lawyers of the Human Rights Directorate that litigated before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights between 2006 and 2007.
He was currently serving as alternate head of mission at the Chilean Embassy in the United States.
Julio Bravo
He is a professor of History and Geography at the University of Concepción and a graduate of the Andrés Bello Diplomatic Academy. He studied a master’s degree in International Relations at the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences.
He has been Chile’s ambassador to Poland. In addition, he has served in the Chilean embassies in the United Kingdom, Peru, Argentina, the United States and in the Secretariat of the Asia-Pacific Economic Forum (APEC), in Singapore.
In the Foreign Ministry, he has been director of International and Human Security, and has held positions in the Planning, Bilateral Policy and America directorates.
Prior to his appointment, he served as head of the Science, Energy, Education, Innovation and Astronomy Division.
मनही पकराती
She is a documentary librarian at the Metropolitan Technological University and a graduate of the Andrés Bello Diplomatic Academy. She studied journalism at the University of Chile and has a master’s degree in International Relations from the Victoria University of Wellington, in New Zealand.
He has served as consul in New Zealand, in the Permanent Mission of Chile to the United Nations and in the Chilean Embassy in Mexico.
In Santiago, he has served in the Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, in the Consular General Directorate and in the geographical directorates of Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. On several occasions, she has fulfilled functions in the General Directorate of Ceremonial and Protocol, where she served as chief of staff and deputy director of Presidential Tours.
Since February 2022, she has served as general director of Ceremonial and Protocol.
Tamara Villanueva
She is a sociologist from the University of Chile and graduated from the Andrés Bello Diplomatic Academy.
He has held positions in the Chilean embassies in Italy, Malaysia and Sweden. In addition, she has been Chile’s deputy permanent representative to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and the World Food Programme.
In the Foreign Ministry, she has been deputy director of the Antarctic Directorate, Executive Secretary of the Chilean Secretariat for the organization of the XXXIX Consultative Meeting of the Antarctic Treaty and has worked in the Multilateral Affairs Division.
She currently served as deputy director of the Environment, Climate Change and Oceans Division.