The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Heraldo Muñoz, announced that the President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, appointed three new ambassadors of Chile abroad, after receiving the agrément from the respective countries. We are referring to James Sinclair, Alfonso Silva and José Luis Balmaceda, who were posted to Australia, Canada and Switzerland, respectively.
Ambassador James Sinclair
Ambassador Sinclair studied management at Universidad de Santiago and International Relations at Universidad de Belgrano, Argentina.
He was Ambassador of Chile to Indonesia. Throughout his career, he has also served at the Chilean embassies in the United States and Argentina, as well as at the Chilean Consulate in Tacna.
At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, James Sinclair has served as Director of Consular Services and as Director General of Protocol and Ceremonial.
Ambassador Alfonso Silva
Ambassador Silva pursued studies in law at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso and Universidad de Chile. Furthermore, he earned postgraduate degrees from John Hopkins University and Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., United States.
He was Ambassador of Chile in India and Jamaica and permanent representative of our country to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). He has served at the Chilean embassies in Brazil, United States and South Africa, and as a member of the Chilean delegation to the Latin American Integration Association (ALADI). He also was Consul General in Barcelona.
Within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he has served as Director General of Foreign Policy and as Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs.
Ambassador José Luis Balmaceda
Ambassador Balmaceda received his law degree from Universidad de Chile and pursued postgraduate studies in International Law and International Relations at Heidelberg University and at the Max Planck Institute in Germany.
Balmaceda has been Ambassador in Norway and Australia. Throughout his career, he has also fulfilled functions at the Chilean embassies in Germany, Peru, United Kingdom, Austria and Spain.
He has served as Director of Europe and Director for the Environment and Maritime Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has also been Chef de Cabinet for the Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs.
At the time of his appointment, Ambassador Balmaceda was serving as Permanent Representative of Chile to the United Nations and other International Organizations in Geneva.