<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The former Secretary General of the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hani Chemaitelly, is his country's new ambassador to Spain, according to Embassy sources confirmed to <em>The Diplomat</em>.</strong></h4> A diplomat since 1999, Hani Chemaitelly was posted to the Lebanese Embassy in France from 2000. Between 2009 and 2010, he served as Chief of Staff to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, in 2012 he served as Consul General in Istanbul, and from July 2017 to June 2025 he served as Secretary General of the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Chemaitelly speaks three languages (Arabic, English, and French) and replaces Hala Keyrouz Ticozzelli, who assumed the post of Lebanese ambassador to Spain in January 2018. The new ambassador presented the Copies of his Credentials to the Director General of Protocol, Adrián Martín Couce, at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs this Friday, according to diplomatic sources who spoke to <em>The Diplomat</em>. Hani Chemaitelly was appointed in mid-June by the Lebanese Council of Ministers. On that occasion, the government appointed 16 new ambassadors to "strategic countries" in Europe, the Americas, Asia, and the Middle East with the aim of reinforcing "Lebanon's presence abroad at a critical time in the region" and "strengthening Lebanon's channels of dialogue with its strategic partners, in a context of growing security instability, internal economic tensions, and pending institutional reforms," according to official sources cited by the local press. The Secretary General is the second most important position in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Lebanon, behind only the Minister. Therefore, the appointment of Hani Chemaitell can be interpreted as a declaration of intent toward Spain, a country that has recently strengthened its foreign policy toward the Middle East, particularly in relation to Gaza and the recognition of the Palestinian State, and which has one of the largest contingents of the UN mission in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL). Last February, the Government of Spain welcomed the formation of the new Lebanese government led by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, "which puts an end to the institutional vacuum in the country." "Spain will continue working to support the consolidation of the ceasefire in Lebanon and the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1701 as one of the main contributors to UNIFIL and supporting the redeployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in a statement. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares made an official visit to Lebanon in mid-January, where he was received by President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam, among others. A few days earlier, the Spanish Government welcomed the Lebanese Parliament's decision to elect General Joseph Aoun as President of the Lebanese Republic and expressed its desire to "continue working closely with the Lebanese authorities for peace, sovereignty, and stability in Lebanon and the entire region." At the end of June, Spain handed over command of UNIFIL to Italy, which it had held since February 2022. Spain's participation in the mission began in September 2006, as part of Operation Libre Hidalgo in southern Lebanon to contribute to the implementation of United Nations Resolution 1701. Since then, the Spanish Armed Forces have led the Eastern Sector of the mission from the Miguel de Cervantes base. The Spanish contingent in UNIFIL is currently one of the largest, with 669 soldiers assigned to various tasks within the mission. The Spanish deployment has focused on patrolling and monitoring the separation line between Israel and Lebanon, in coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces. Patrols are carried out both on foot and in vehicles, with the aim of preventing violations of the truce and preventing tensions between the parties from escalating into clashes.
