Spain Appoints new ambassador to Cuba

Madrid, May 11. – The conservative government of Mariano Rajoy today appointed Juan Francisco Montalban as new Ambassador of Spain in Cuba, replacing Manuel Cacho, who assumed the post in October 2008.

Montalban's appointment was approved on Friday at the weekly meeting of the Council of Ministers, which also agreed to appoint new ambassadors to Israel, Lebanon and Kazakhstan.

Montalban, who was born in 1958, studied Political Science, Sociology and Law and is a member of the Diplomatic Corps since 1985, according to state news agency, EFE.

Previously, Montalban served in that office in El Salvador and Bolivia, and has held various positions at the Spanish Embassy in Mozambique, Nicaragua and Mexico.

He was also vice president of Institute for Development Cooperation and the Office of Planning and Evaluation, and director of the Institute of Iberoamerican Cooperation.

Nowadays, Montalban was senior permanent representative to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Europe.(Prensa Latina)