Previous Story
Ambassadors: a political or a professional profile
Posted On 12 Jul 2017
Ecuadornews:
The law empowers the President to designate a political quota. He can appoint a 20% of the total diplomatic representation.
Ambassadors do not necessarily need a career related to diplomacy. Beyond the profile, ambassadors must represent the country in a good way to prevent it from being excluded.
In the last days, much was said about the political faculty the president would have to appoint his representatives in the embassies. Several internationalist experts inquired consider that this “mixed formula” (a career and a political quota) has been maintained for years.
Internationalist and President of Universidad Dos Hemisferios Íñigo Salvador said that it is not only a practice but that this power granted to the President is contained in the Foreign Service Law. “The president has a margin of discretion to choose his delegates politically,” he said.
Article 84 of the norm determines that the President has the possibility to appoint 20% of the total diplomatic corps.
Foreign Minister Patricio Zuquilanda said that the important thing in this type of appointments is that an ambassador is a person familiar with the economic, social and cultural issues of Ecuador in order to carry out negotiations that favor it. (I)
Source: http://www.expreso.ec/actualidad/embajadores-perfil-politico-o-profesional-CX1541400