This Friday at the Royal Palace, the King presided over the ceremony for the delivery of credentials of six new ambassadors, among whom was that of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Reza Zabid. The new diplomat replaces Hassan Ghashghavi in the position, whose gesture of not shaking hands with Queen Letizia at the last reception for the Diplomatic Corps, as he had done on other occasions, went viral. Since the triumph of the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, men are not allowed to shake hands with women in public.
The presentation of credential letters, with a very colorful protocol, is the necessary requirement so that the new ambassadors can fully assume their position. The process begins when their respective countries ask the Spanish government for approval and, after its acceptance, they take up their position in Madrid, after delivering the style copies of their credentials to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. But it is not until they appear before the King that they can fully represent their country and attend official events such as the reception of the Diplomatic Corps, which this year, like previous years, will take place at the end of January.
In the ceremony at the Royal Palace, the King, accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, also received the credentials of the new ambassadors of El Salvador, Joaquín Alexander Maza; North Macedonia, Edmond Ademi; Peru, Walter Francisco Gutiérrez; Thailand, Vosita Vorasaph and Angola, Alfredo Dombe. After the delivery of their credentials, the ambassadors held their respective meetings with the King in an adjoining room.
For reasons of organization of the Royal Guard cavalry, the ambassadors have traveled in an official car from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Royal Palace, instead of doing so in the period floats that traditionally characterize the ceremony, one of the most attractive. of the traditional diplomatic protocol. Next week, the King will receive another batch of new ambassadors in which the representatives of Italy, Turkey, Vietnam, Mozambique, the Czech Republic and Costa Rica will present their credentials and the reception to the Diplomatic Corps is scheduled to take place on the 31st. .
