Felipe VI will receive the Letters of Credence from the ambassadors of Ghana, Chile, Venezuela, Nigeria, Thailand, and Palestine on Monday

Eduardo González King Felipe VI will receive the Letters of Credence from the new ambassadors of Ghana, Chile, Venezuela, Nigeria, Thailand, and Palestine next Monday, September 14, at the Royal Palace in Madrid. According to the Royal Household, the King will receive, in the traditional ceremony held at the Royal Palace in Madrid, the Letters of Credence from the accredited ambassadors of Ghana, Kulsoume Baffoe; Chile, Juan Antonio Coloma Correa; Venezuela, Timoteo de Jesús Zambrano Guédez; Nigeria, Okezie Victor Ikpeazu; Thailand, Cheevindh Nathalang; and Palestine, Fadi F. H. Elhusseini. Letters of Credence are the document that accredits a foreign ambassador as the representative and highest diplomatic authority of another country in Spain. The ceremony of presentation before the Head of State dates back to the 18th century and has remained virtually unchanged to this day. Ghana The renowned actress and former model Kalsoume Sinare Baffoe was appointed Ghana's ambassador to Spain on March 17 by her country's president, John Mahama, and presented her Letters of Credence on April 10 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Madrid. Born in April 1967, Kalsoume Sinare Baffoe has appeared in more than fifty films, represented Ghana in the 1990 Miss Model of the World pageant, and was a regular television model. A Muslim and an avowed supporter of the National Democratic Congress party, the new ambassador participated in John Mahama's inauguration in 2013 and again supported the president in the 2016 elections, in which he was defeated. Mahama returned to power in 2025. According to media in his country, his appointment could be interpreted as a strategic move to enhance Ghana's "soft power" on the international stage through "a combination of cultural diplomacy and international engagement." Chile The new Chilean ambassador is Juan Antonio Coloma Correa, a member of the Independent Democratic Union (UDI), a right-wing party that is part of President José Antonio Kast's current governing coalition. His appointment was officially announced on May 26 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Juan Antonio Coloma was born in Santiago in July 1956 (he recently turned seventy). A lawyer from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and a member of the UDI party—of which he was general secretary (1994-2001), vice president (2002-2004) and president (2008-2012)—he was a member of the Council of State between 1977 and 1989 (during the dictatorial regime of Augusto Pinochet), a deputy between 1990 and 2002, a senator between 2002 and 2026, and president of the Senate between March 2023 and March 2024. He also headed the Permanent Committee on Foreign Relations and participated in the Chilean-German interparliamentary group. Venezuela Timoteo Zambrano, 71, a man long associated with the more moderate and dialogue-oriented opposition to Chavismo, presented his credentials as Venezuela's new ambassador to Spain on June 16. Between 2002 and 2004, he was one of the leading figures in the anti-Chavista alliance, the Democratic Coordinator, and after several political shifts, in 2010 he was one of the founders of the Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD), another anti-Chavista platform. These activities, along with his moderate and conciliatory nature, led him to participate in several political negotiation processes with the regime and to maintain a very close relationship with former Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. The appointment of Zambrano—who replaces Gladys Gutiérrez Alvarado—appears to reveal the intention of Delcy Rodríguez's government to send to Madrid (for the first time in over twenty years) someone outside of Chavismo, but sufficiently open to dialogue to avoid breaking with the regime. This profile seems to fit very well with the current transition process underway in Venezuela, overseen by US President Donald Trump since the military assault on Caracas on January 3rd that led to the capture of President Nicolás Maduro. Nigeria The new Nigerian ambassador to Spain, Okezie Ikpeazu, presented his Letters of Credence on July 13th. He is the first Nigerian ambassador to Spain since December 2022, when his predecessor, former minister Demola Seriki, died at the age of 63 after a year and a half in Madrid. During this time, the highest-ranking representative of the Embassy had been the Minister Counselor and Chargé d'Affaires (a.i.), Binta A. Dala. Born in October 1964 in southern Nigeria and a biochemist by training and profession, Okezie Ikpeazu has developed his political career as governor of his home state of Abia for two consecutive terms, between 2015 and 2023. His appointment as a “political” ambassador is part of “a broader diplomatic restructuring aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s foreign relations,” in this case with Spain, “a key partner in trade, investment, and cultural exchange,” according to government sources speaking to the Nigerian press. Thailand The new Thai ambassador to Spain is Cheevindh Nathalang, who presented his Letters of Credence on July 24. He replaces Vosita Vorasaph, Thailand's ambassador to Spain since 2023. Palestine Fadi Elhusseini presented his Letters of Credence on July 27 as the new Palestinian ambassador to Spain. He is the "second ambassador to represent Palestine in Madrid since Spain's historic recognition of the State of Palestine in 2024," the Embassy stated that day on LinkedIn. Elhusseini replaces Husni Abdel Wahed, who assumed the position of head of the Palestinian Authority Mission in Spain (as it was then called) in March 2022, succeeding Musa Amer Odeh, who left the post in July 2021 after more than fifteen years as the Palestinian representative in Madrid. Husni Abdel Wahed presented his Letters of Credence to the King on September 16, 2024, becoming the first official Palestinian ambassador since Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez recognized the State of Palestine on May 28 of that year. During his nearly three decades of diplomatic service, Fadi Elhusseini has worked in the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, serving in Palestinian embassies in Egypt, Turkey, Canada, and Hungary. The new ambassador is a multilingual academic with a doctorate in history and international relations from the United Kingdom and has authored several books, studies, and research papers on political affairs and international relations.

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