Carlos Ramiro Martínez Alvarado (born 13 September 1958) is a Guatemalan diplomat serving as the minister of foreign affairs of Guatemala since 15 January 2024. [1] He previously served as vice minister of foreign affairs under the governments of Alejandro Giammattei,Alejandro Maldonado,Óscar Berger and Ramiro de León Carpio and as the ambassador to Argentina and Paraguay under the government of Otto Pérez Molina. [2]
Martínez Alvarado was born on 13 September 1958 in Guatemala City. [3] He graduated with a degree in international relations from the University of San Carlos. He also obtained a specialization in Italy. [4] Apart from his native Spanish,he speaks English,French and Italian. [3]
He joined the Guatemalan Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the 1990s and began holding several important positions such as the deputy director of multilateral policy and director of integration. Later he was appointed as Guatemala's ambassador to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva. [4] He was the ambassador to Argentina and Paraguay. [5]
He was the vice minister of foreign affairs of Guatemala from 1994 to 1995,2004 to 2006,2015 to 2017 and 2020 to 2022. [4] He left office as viceminister in February 2022 and was appointed ambassador to Italy. [6] Although Italian President Sergio Mattarella had given his approval for the nomination,Martínez did not take office. [7]
In the second transition meeting with the outgoing government of Alejandro Giammattei,Martínez was appointed by the president-elect Bernardo Arévalo as a member of the transition team and since then he has been in charge of the issue related to foreign policy. He has accompanied the president-elect on his trips abroad. On 9 January 2024,he was nominated as Minister of Foreign Affairs. [3] He assumed office on 15 January 2024.
In February 2024,Martínez stated that Guatemala is considering establishing formal trade relations with China while maintaining existing relations with Taiwan. [8]
Politics of Guatemala takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic,where by the President of Guatemala is both head of state,head of government,and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Congress of the Republic. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. Guatemala is a Constitutional Republic.
The National Unity of Hope is a populist political party in Guatemala. It was founded in 2002 and defined itself as a social-democratic and social-Christian party,but since transformed and is now described as a right-wing party. It is the largest political party in Guatemala by the number of members.
The Ministry of National Defence is the agency of the Guatemalan government responsible for the budget,training and policy of the military of Guatemala. Based in Guatemala City,the Defence Ministry is highly guarded,and the President of Guatemala frequently visits. Prior to 1945 the agency was titled the Secretariat of War.
Capital punishment is a legal penalty in Guatemala,and is carried out by lethal injection and,to a lesser extent,the firing squad. The death penalty today remains only in Guatemala's military codes of justice,and was abolished for civilian offences in October 2017.
Guatemala and Mexico are neighboring nations who established diplomatic relations in 1848. In January 1959 both nations broke diplomatic relations as a result of the Mexico–Guatemala conflict,however,diplomatic relations were re-established 8 months later in September of that same year. Since then diplomatic relations have continued unabated since. Diplomatic relations between both nations are based on close proximity,trade,cultural similarities and a shared history.
Carlos Raúl Morales Moscoso is a Guatemalan diplomat and former government official who served as Guatemala's Minister of Foreign Affairs from September 2014 to August 2017 under the governments of Jimmy Morales,Alejandro Maldonado and Otto Pérez Molina.
Sir Ronald Michael Sanders is an Antiguan Barbudan diplomat,academic,former broadcast-journalist,and the current Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States and to the Organization of American States (OAS) since 2015. He holds the unique distinction of being the first person,since the OAS enlarged its membership in 1962,to serve as Chairman of the Permanent Council of the OAS for an unprecedented three terms. He completed his highly successful third term on December 31,2023,having played a widely recognized role in guiding the work of the Permanent Council in the peaceful transition of government in Guatemala on 14 January 2024.
The order of precedence in Guatemala is a symbolic hierarchy of officials used to direct protocol. It is regulated by Presidential Decree 07-2003 of March 11,2003. signed by then President Alfonso Portillo,President of the Congress Efraín Ríos Montt and Former Interior Minister JoséAdolfo Reyes Calderón.
Movimiento Semilla is a centre-left,progressive,social-democratic political party in Guatemala. On 14 January 2024,it became Guatemala's governing party following the inauguration of President Bernardo Arévalo.
Alejandro Eduardo Giammattei Falla is a Guatemalan politician who was the 51st president of Guatemala from 2020 to 2024.
Pedro Brolo Vila is a Guatemalan economist,diplomat and politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 14 January 2020 to 31 January 2022,under the government of Alejandro Giammattei.
General elections were held in Guatemala on 25 June 2023 to elect the president and vice president,all 160 seats in Congress,all 20 members of the Central American Parliament,and mayors and councils for all the country's 340 municipalities. Incumbent president Alejandro Giammattei was constitutionally prohibited from running for a second four-year term. However,as no presidential candidate obtained over 50 percent of the vote in the first round on 25 June 2023,a second round was held between the top two finishers on 20 August 2023:Congressman Bernardo Arévalo of the Movimiento Semilla and Sandra Torres,a former first lady representing the National Unity of Hope (UNE) party. Arévalo defeated Torres in the second round with nearly 61 percent of the vote in what was seen as a landslide. The ruling Vamos party won the largest number of seats in Congress.
César Bernardo Arévalo de León is a Guatemalan diplomat,sociologist,writer,and politician who is the 52nd and current president of Guatemala since 2024. A member and co-founder of the Semilla party,he previously served as a deputy in the Congress of Guatemala from 2020 to 2024,as Ambassador to Spain from 1995 to 1996 and as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1994 to 1995.
The Council of Ministers of Guatemala governs the country through the executive branch of Guatemala. There is a total of 14 ministries,each headed by a Minister that is appointed by the president.
The inauguration of Bernardo Arévalo as the 52nd president of Guatemala on Monday,15 January 2024 marked the commencement of the four-year term of Bernardo Arévalo as president and Karin Herrera as vice president.
The Cabinet of Bernardo Arévalo constitutes the fifty-second and current cabinet of Guatemala. It succeeds the Giammattei cabinet.
Bernardo Arévalo,the president-elect of Guatemala,completed his transition to the presidency upon being sworn in on the 15th of January 2024. He became the candidate of Semilla in January 2020. Vice-president-elect Karin Herrera led Arévalo's transition team.
The Ministry of Culture and Sports is a government ministry of Guatemala,headquartered in Zone 1 of Guatemala City. It is responsible for promoting,developing,and conserving initiatives relating to Guatemalan culture and heritage.
María JoséIturbide is a biologist with more than 25 years of experience in natural resources management. She served as minister of environment and natural resources. She served from January 2024 to 11 April 2024 until President Bernardo Arévalo fired Iturbide after it was made aware that Iturbide assigned security and state vehicles to her daughter for her personal activities.
Henry David Sáenz Ramos is a Guatemalan military officer who has served as the Minister of National Defense,since 15 January 2024,under the government of Bernardo Arévalo. He previously served as the head of the administrative department of the military industry from 1 January to 14 August 2015.