A Spanish ambassador has been dismissed after dozing off during an extended speech delivered by his superior, according to Spanish media.
Alberto Antón, Spain’s envoy to Belgium, was removed from his position by Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, after he was caught napping at a conference in Madrid earlier this month. The report first appeared in the online news site, The Objective, and has also since appeared in The Times.
Spanish media reported that Albares took action after a video surfaced online showing Antón indulging in an impromptu siesta during the minister’s one-hour address at the annual gathering of ambassadors.
According to El Mundo, the socialist (PSOE) minister has dismissed at least seven high-ranking officials, allegedly as ‘revenge’ for personal slights or opposition to government policies. This has reportedly created ‘a climate of terror’ within the diplomatic corps.
‘For the first time, beyond political sectarianism, personal vendettas are the day-to-day business of the ministry,’ an anonymous diplomat told El Mundo.
Another unnamed ambassador told the right-wing paper ABC that Albares keeps a list of diplomats with whom he has grievances. ‘We call it “the notebook of Monte Cristo” [in allusion to the Alexandre Dumas novel] and revenge is unleashed on all the names he has written,’ the anonymous ambassador is quoted as saying to ABC.
Recently, Spain’s ambassador to Croatia, Juan González-Barba, was dismissed before the end of his term. His removal was reportedly linked to an article he wrote defending King Felipe VI’s role in Spain’s international affairs.
Albares has also reportedly been displeased with diplomats publishing opinion pieces without his approval. In 2023, Javier Benosa, then head of the Gibraltar Office, wrote about his unease over Madrid’s controversial amnesty for Catalan pro-independence leaders. Within three weeks, he was removed from the role he had held for just nine months, The Objective online news site reported.
The foreign minister has previously been mocked as a ‘Napoleonchu‘, or ‘Little Napoleon’, on Spanish social media and has been criticised for appointing political allies to key positions.
Spanish media reported that the recent shake-up allowed him to transfer the Belgian ambassadorship to the ambassador to Luxembourg, who was in turn replaced by Nieves Blanco – formerly the ambassador to Lithuania and the wife of Marcos Alonso, Spain’s permanent representative to the European Union and a close associate of Albares.
A diplomatic association has sent a letter to Albares urging him to uphold ‘transparency, equal opportunity, merit, and capability’ in diplomatic appointments.
Additionally, Albares made headlines when he barred Spanish embassy diplomats in London from commenting on Queen Elizabeth II’s passing. He also reportedly reprimanded the London head of the Cervantes Institute – Spain’s equivalent of the British Council – for speaking to Spanish media about the late monarch.
Albares destituye al embajador en Bélgica por quedarse dormido durante un discurso suyo.
— En boca de todos (@EnBocaDe_Todos) January 30, 2025
🔴 #EnBocaDeTodos30E en @cuatro con @Nacho_Abad
➡ https://t.co/YxZKMJVWfz pic.twitter.com/LLnYDbfGiY
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