What Will AMLO Gain From His Visit to the White House?
A Latin America Advisor Q&A featuring experts’ takes on Mexican President López Obrador’s first trip abroad since taking office, to Washington.
Martha Bárcena
Mexico | Ambassador of Mexico to the United States,
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Martha Bárcena is ambassador of Mexico to the United States. She has served in various diplomatic roles in her career.
She joined the Mexican Foreign Service in 1979, and has been the Consul in Barcelona (1989-1990); Ambassador to the Kingdom of Denmark, non-resident to the Kingdom of Norway and the Republic of Iceland from December 2004 to April 2013; Ambassador to the Republic of Turkey, non-resident to Georgia and the Republics of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan from May 2013 to March 2017; and Permanent Representative of Mexico to the United Nations Agencies based in Rome from April 2017 to December 2018.
In the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bárcena has been Technical Secretary of the III LAC-EU Summit (2003-2004); Adviser to the Undersecretary for Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the United Nations, specialized in international security and peacekeeping operations (2000-2003); Deputy Director of the Planning and Prospective Division (1998-2000) and Advisor to the Executive Director of the Mexican Institute of International Cooperation, as well as the Director in Chief of Multilateral Affairs, and the Director-General of Cultural Affairs and Historical Diplomatic Acquis (1986- 1989). She was also Head of the Department of Migrant Workers and Border Cooperation in the General Directorate for North America.
Ambassador Bárcena has been Mexico’s delegate to the UN, the OAS, UNESCO, FAO, WFP, IFAD, and ICAO, as well as head of Delegation in sessions of the Forum on Migration and Development. She has participated in multiple international conferences, including the G-20 and the World Humanitarian Summit.
In the social sector, Ambassador Bárcena served as advisor to the Director of the Regional Center for Cooperation in Adult Education in Latin America and the Caribbean (CREFAL) and General Director of CELAG (Latin American Center for Globality), an NGO that promotes research on Global Governance and the impact of globalization in Latin America.
Ambassador Bárcena has a degree in Communication Sciences, graduated from the Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico City, and a degree in Philosophy, summa cum laude, from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. She holds a Master’s Degree in International Studies (Diplomatic School, Spain) and has a Master’s Degree in Philosophy specializing in Political Philosophy (Universidad Iberoamericana). She speaks English, French, and Italian and has knowledge of German, Danish, and Chinese.
Ambassador Bárcena was an event speaker at the Dialogue.
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