Veteran diplomat Enrique Manalo has been named as the new Foreign Affairs chief, Press secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles confirmed on Friday, July 1.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. swore in Manalo, the Philippines' permanent representative to the United Nations under the Duterte administration, at the Malacañang.
Manalo will succeed former Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr.
Angeles confirmed the appointment to reporters on Friday, saying, "Yes it is confirmed. But he asked for a few days to wind up affairs in his previous post."
Manalo, who is a seasoned career ambassador, has been at the forefront in addressing several critical issues on foreign policy. His career in the Philippine Foreign Service spans nearly four decades since he joined the department in 1979.
He represented the Philippines as the chairman of various international meetings and conferences. He also served the DFA in various capacities prior to his first appointment as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in 2003.
Manalo also became the Philippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 2011 to 2016; Non-Resident Philippine Ambassador to Ireland from 2013 to 2016; Philippine Ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg, and Head of the Philippine Mission to the European Union from 2010 to 2011; and Philippine Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Philippine Mission to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, Switzerland from 2003 to 2007.
His other tours of duty leading up to his eventual appointment as head of a diplomatic mission included the Philippine Mission to the United Nations in New York and the Philippine Embassy in Washington D.C.