President Luis Abinader received the letters of credence for six ambassadors at the Presidential Palace on Tuesday, 28 November 2023. The President was accompanied by Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez and Vice President Raquel Peña. The President spoke several minutes with each ambassador.
The new ambassadors are:
Argentina. María Sandra Winkler. She is a graduate in International Relations from the National University of Rosario, Argentina. She has postgraduate studies and several specialization courses at the Universidad Abierta Interamericana, Universidad Austral and Georgetown University. She has been head of the economic and commercial sections of the Argentine Embassies in Japan and Paraguay. Since 2020 she was been the director for Latin American and Economic Integration. She previously worked for nine years at the economic and commercial section of the Embassy of Argentina in Paraguay. Interestingly, she was appointed by the outgoing President of Argentina, just weeks before the change of government.
Canada. Jacqueline DeLima Baril. She has a bachelor’s degree in political studies from Queen’s University and a master’s degree in Global Development Management from the UK Open University. She started her international career in Belgium, serving on the executive team of AIESEC International. She was later assigned with the United Nations in Costa Rica before she joined the Canadian International Development Agency I 1998. She has held posts in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
In 1998, she joined the Canadian Public Service, starting at the Canadian International Development Agency. She was chief of staff for Southern and Eastern Africa and then the director of operations, planning and strategic coordination for Sub-Saharan Africa. Abroad, she served at Canadian missions in Vietnam from 2007 to 2011 and in Honduras from 2021 to 2023 as head of office, head of cooperation, and consul.
Cuba. Ángel Arzuaga Reyes. He is a graduate from the Enrique José Varona Higher Institute, where he obtained a degree in History and Social Sciences. He studied at the Raúl Roa García Higher Institute of International Relations. He has been part of official delegations to different countries.
Jamaica. Franz Hall. He holds a bachelor of science in International Relations from the University of the West Indies and a Master of Arts in International Relations from City College, New York. In 1992 he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade. He previously was ambassador in Cuba where he served as the Chair of the Caricom Caucus of Ambassadors in Havana.
Norway. Beate Stirø. She has worked in the Norwegian Foreign Service since 1990. She has coordinated projects for Latin America. She is concurrently ambassador to other countries in the Caribbean. She has been ambassador for Norway in Chile and Cuba. She has been deputy director and director of technical affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She is a graduate from the Norwegian Defense Academy.
Trinidad & Tobago. Deryck Lace Murray. He is a graduate in Business Administration from the University of Nottingham, United Kingdom. He later studied economics and history at the University of Cambridge. He served in the foreign service of Trinidad and Tobago, where he was appointed to the Committee on Programs and Coordination at the United Nations headquarters in New York. Previous to his appointment to the Dominican Republic, he was High Commissioner for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in Jamaica.
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Presidency
29 November 2023