Tensions in the Spanish diplomatic corps over Albares' appointments

MadridWhen the crisis over the law broke out, only yes is yes, the Spanish government offered Podemos that Irene Montero be appointed ambassador to Chile. Treating this position, the highest level within the diplomatic career ladder, as a "nice" formula - according to the purple formation - to get rid of someone, is a common practice questioned for years by members of the diplomatic corps, made up of state officials who must take competitive exams and accumulate merits for years to access them. Other former ministers of Pedro Sánchez, unlike Montero, accepted this position. Isabel Celaá, former Minister of Education and former spokesperson for the executive, is ambassador to the Vatican; Héctor Gómez, former Minister of Industry, is ambassador to the United Nations Organization, based in New York, and Miquel Iceta, former head of Culture, is ambassador to UNESCO, based in Paris.

Legally, the Spanish government can appoint whoever it wants as ambassador. According to the foreign action law, it is the council of ministers that appoints and dismisses an ambassador at the proposal of the foreign minister, who is given the "discretionary power" to make appointments not only among civil servants but also among people who are not part of the diplomatic corps. "Based on criteria of professional competence and experience," the law adds. The political use of this position is not a new debate nor exclusive to Sánchez's mandate, but also occurred with the PP. The appointment of Federico Trillo, former Minister of Defense, as ambassador to the United Kingdom was notorious due to the contradiction it represented with the promise that the then foreign minister had made shortly before with Mariano Rajoy, José Manuel García-Margallo, who from his mandate onwards the norm would be that the embassies would be "res".

The fact that "technical and sensitive" embassies such as those of the UN and UNESCO have been used to remove politicians who no longer have a place in the front line had already generated criticism against the current head of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares. The Association of Spanish Diplomats (ADE), the majority in the race, denounced at the end of 2023 that people "without a relevant international career" were placed there when traditionally "diplomats of proven worth" have access to it. A new statement from the ADE, two weeks ago, put the spotlight back on Albares. In this case, for having made three dismissals considered "arbitrary" of officials who have been replaced by other members of the diplomatic career chosen by the minister. The controversy comes from the fact that he has decided to replace them unexpectedly before his term ended. These are the ambassadors in Croatia, South Korea and Belgium. The latter, Alberto Antón, for having fallen asleep at a public event.

Antón counterattacked with a letter in which he accused Albares of wanting to "sow insecurity and fear" among the diplomatic corps. The president of the ADE, Alberto Virella, has also denounced this, speaking of a climate of total control by the Minister of Foreign Affairs. He is accused of acting viscerally and due to issues of personal animosity in the replacements. In the case of Guillermo Kirkpatrick, former ambassador to South Korea, the dismissal came after he met with the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, without asking permission from his superiors. The decision on the former representative of Spain in Croatia, Juan González-Barba, who had held other positions of responsibility with the PSOE, came after he published an article praising the contribution of the monarchy in projecting the image of Spain.

This type of premature relief had already been the subject of complaints. Former minister Josep Borrell was already criticised when he took over from Margallo. In the case of Albares, the decision was made when he has been in office since 2021 and not with a change of political colour of the government. Also without there being any compelling reasons, as the president of the ADE points out. Virella goes further in the complaint and says that the appointments are the "tip of the iceberg" of a hierarchy that is also denounced by diplomats consulted by Europa Press, who regret that all decisions go through the minister and that he does not share sensitive information with them, something that in some cases leaves them at a loss. "He behaves like a minister of a State that is not democratic," one of them even denounces. ADE also accuses him of having surrounded himself with a team that "knows less than him" to avoid being questioned. The Central Independent and Civil Servants Trade Union (CSIF) has joined the criticism, warning of the "progressive deterioration" of Foreign Affairs with "the abuse of the free designation system" to "reward" like-minded people.

The regulation that does not arrive

Albares has responded to the criticism by defending that he is complying with the law and that the Foreign Ministry "is governed by the usual channels." "When the mission or context changes, you see who is the best person to fill the position," he justified regarding the replacements. For years, the approval of a regulation that sets "objective criteria" for appointing and dismissing ambassadors has been proposed as a solution to this situation. This is what ADE is asking for. Rajoy's government approved one in 2014, two years after the controversial appointment of Trillo, which the Supreme Court overturned in 2017 for not having negotiated with the unions. The attempt to recover it, initiated by Arancha González Laya, Albares' predecessor, has been left in a drawer without an approval date. Virella accuses the minister of keeping the new regulation frozen because his discretion is not limited, while the Foreign Ministry shields itself by saying that it is waiting for another rule to be approved that will regulate the civil service to adapt it. However, despite the regulations that included the requirements that diplomats had to meet being in force, Margallo still appointed former Minister of Education José Ignacio Wert as ambassador to the OECD in 2015.