Francisco Javier Rupérez Rubio (born April 24, 1941) is a Spanish politician, diplomat and writer, was born in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

on 24 April 1941. He holds degrees in law (1962) and

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...

(1975) from the

Complutense University of Madrid The Complutense University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Complutense de Madrid; UCM, links=no, ''Universidad de Madrid'', ''Universidad Central de Madrid''; la, Universitas Complutensis Matritensis, links=no) is a public research university loca ...

. Since 2006 he has held the rank of full

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

within the Spanish Diplomatic Service, which he joined in 1967. Rupérez is the brother of the late Spanish diplomat Ignacio Rupérez, who served as Ambassador to

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

from 2005 to 2008.

Early career

Already active in politics in his university years as a member of the clandestine Christian Democratic opposition to

General Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War and thereafter ruled over Spain from 193 ...

, he was one of the founders, in 1962, of the monthly magazine '' Cuadernos para el Diálogo'', edited by

Joaquín Ruiz-Giménez Joaquín Ruiz-Giménez Cortés ( Hoyo de Manzanares, Madrid, 2 August 1913 - Madrid, 27 August 2009) was a Spanish politician and jurist. He was minister of Education under Franco (1951-1955) but he drifted apart from the Francoist State since 19 ...

, where he wrote regularly about

foreign policy A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking ...

and

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

. After Franco's death in 1975 he joined the centrist party ''

Unión de Centro Democrático The Union of the Democratic Centre (, UCD, also translated as "Democratic Centre Union") was an electoral alliance, and later political party, in Spain, existing from 1977 to 1983. It was initially led by Adolfo Suárez. History The coalition, ...

'' (UCD) led by Prime Minister

Adolfo Suárez Adolfo Suárez González, 1st Duke of Suárez (; 25 September 1932 – 23 March 2014) was a Spanish lawyer and politician. Suárez was Spain's first democratically elected prime minister since the Second Spanish Republic and a key figure in th ...

, of which Rupérez was Secretary for Foreign Relations and member of the Executive Committee. In 1982 he joined the '' Partido Demócrata Popular'' (PDP), later called ''Democracia Cristiana'' (DC), of which he was elected vice president and later (1988) President. He was instrumental in facilitating the merging of the PDP/DC party with other parties to form the new '' Partido Popular'' (PP), led by the future Prime Minister (1996–2004)

José María Aznar José María Alfredo Aznar López (; born 25 February 1953) is a Spanish politician who was the prime minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He led the People's Party (PP), the dominant centre-right political party in Spain. A member of the Fre ...

. He was vice president of the party and member of its leadership committee.

Diplomatic career

As a diplomat he has been posted to

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

(1967–1969),

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

(1969–1972),

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

(1972–1973) and

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

(1973–1975). Between 1976 and 1977 he was Chief of Staff to the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs. He was Ambassador of Spain to the Madrid session of the

Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) was a key element of the détente process during the Cold War. Although it did not have the force of a treaty, it recognized the boundaries of postwar Europe and established a mechanism f ...

(1980–1982), Ambassador of Spain to

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

(1982–1983) and Ambassador of Spain to the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

(2000–2004). He was Assistant Secretary General of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

in New York between 2004 and 2007 as Executive Director of the

United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee The Counter-Terrorism Committee is a subsidiary body of the United Nations Security Council. In the wake of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 1373, w ...

. He has been living in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

since 2007 as Consul General of Spain to the

US Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

Spanish and international politics

He was a Member of the

Spanish Parliament The Cortes Generales (; en, Spanish Parliament, lit=General Courts) are the bicameral legislative chambers of Spain, consisting of the Congress of Deputies (the lower house), and the Senate (the upper house). The Congress of Deputies meet ...

between 1979 and 2000, in the

Spanish Congress of Deputies The Congress of Deputies ( es, link=no, Congreso de los Diputados, italic=unset) is the lower house of the Cortes Generales, Spain's legislative branch. The Congress meets in the Palace of the Parliament () in Madrid. It has 350 members elect ...

(1979–1983 and 1986–2000) and from 1983 to 1986 as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

designated by the regional Cortes of Castilla-La Mancha, of which he was a member by that time representing Cuenca. As a member of the House he represented the electoral districts of Cuenca (1979–1982, 1986–1989),

(1989–1993) and

Ciudad Real Ciudad Real (, ; en, "Royal City") is a municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha, capital of the province of Ciudad Real. It is the 5th most populated municipality in the region. History It was founde ...

(1993-2000.) He was the Foreign and Defense Affairs Parliamentary Spokesman for the UCD, PDP and PP. His connections abroad and his early adherence to the Christian Democracy, in due time proved useful for the international recognition of those parties. He was Vice President of the

European Union of Christian Democrats The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Ch ...

between 1986 and 1988 and President of the

Christian Democrat International The Centrist Democrat International ( es, Internacional Demócrata de Centro) is a Christian-democratic political international. Until 2001, it was known as the Christian Democrat International (CDI); before 1999, it was known as the Christian D ...

(1998–2000). He was Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives (1996–2000) and Chairman of the Defense Committee (2000). He was President of OSCE's Parliamentary Assembly (1996–1998) and President of NATO's Parliamentary Assembly (1998–2000). Between 1979 and 1983 he was active in the

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe, a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The Assembly is made up o ...

. In 1979 he was kidnapped by the Basque terrorism group

ETA Eta (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἦτα ''ē̂ta'' or ell, ήτα ''ita'' ) is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the close front unrounded vowel . Originally denoting the voiceless glottal fricative in most dialects, ...

and held captive for a month (11 November to 12 December).

Publications and lectures

He has been and remains a regular contributor to Spain's national newspapers -''

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

'', '' El Mundo'', ''

El País ''El País'' (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. ''El País'' is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . ''El Pa ...

'', ''El Imparcial''- and to a number of leading periodicals -''

Revista de Occidente ''Revista de Occidente'' (Spanish: ''Magazine of the West'') is a cultural magazine which has been in circulation since 1923 with some interruptions. It is based in Madrid, Spain, and is known for its founder, José Ortega y Gasset, a Spanish phi ...

'', ''Cuadernos de Pensamiento Político'' (

FAES The FAES (Fundación para el Análisis y los Estudios Sociales or "Foundation for Analysis and Social Studies" in English) is a Spanish think tank. It is a non-profit liberal-conservative organisation with strong links to the Popular Party (PP); ...

), ''Cuenta y Razón'' and ''Análisis del Instituto Elcano'' (

Elcano Royal Institute The Elcano Royal Institute for International and Strategic Studies (Spanish: ''Real Instituto Elcano de Estudios Internacionales y Estratégicos''; RIE) is a think tank based in Madrid, Spain. It was created on 26 November 2001 as private foundati ...

). He lectures regularly at several Spanish universities -

Complutense The Complutense University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Complutense de Madrid; UCM, links=no, ''Universidad de Madrid'', ''Universidad Central de Madrid''; la, Universitas Complutensis Matritensis, links=no) is a public university, public resea ...

in Madrid, Fundación Universitaria San Pablo CEU in Madrid, Menendez Pelayo in

Santander Santander may refer to: Places * Santander, Spain, a port city and capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain * Santander Department, a department of Colombia * Santander State, former state of Colombia * Santander de Quilichao, a m ...

- as well as American universities -

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-United States Secretary of the Treasu ...

and Columbia in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

;

Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his ...

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is the fourth-largest city in Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the largest city and county seat of Utah County and is home to Brigham Young University (BYU). Provo lies between the ...

;

University of Wisconsin at Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

; DePaul in Chicago;

Central Connecticut State University Central Connecticut State University (Central Connecticut, CCSU, Central Connecticut State, or informally Central) is a public university in New Britain, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1849 as the State Normal School, CCSU is Connecticut ...

New Britain New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from New Guinea by a northwest corner of the Solomon Sea (or with an island hop of Umboi the Dam ...

; and at the

New Hampshire Institute of Politics The New Hampshire Institute of Politics (NHIOP) is an academic institute at Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire. Founded in 2001, the institute has hosted hundreds of potential candidates for the U.S. presidency. History The New Ham ...

Saint Anselm College Saint Anselm College is a private Benedictine liberal arts college in Goffstown, New Hampshire. Founded in 1889, it is the third-oldest Catholic college in New England. Named for Saint Anselm of Canterbury (Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to ...

Goffstown, New Hampshire Goffstown is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 18,577 at the 2020 census. The compact center of town, where 3,366 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as the Goffst ...

Works authored

*''El espejismo multilateral'' (''The Multilateral Mirage'') Almuzara, Cordoba, 2009. *''El precio de una sombra'' (''The Price of a Shadow'') a novel, Destino, Barcelona, 2005. * ''Secuestrado por ETA'' (''Kidnapped by ETA'') Temas de Hoy, Madrid, 1991. * ''Primer Libro de Relatos'' (''First Book of Stories'') Bitácora, Madrid, 1989. * ''España en la OTAN: relato parcial'' (''Spain in NATO: a Partial Account'') Planeta, Barcelona, 1986. * ''Una cierta idea de España'' (''A Certain Idea of Spain'') Humanismo y Democracia, Madrid, 1983. * ''Europa entre el miedo y la esperanza'' (''Europe Caught between Fear and Hope'') Cuadernos para el Diálogo, Madrid, 1975. * ''Estado Confesional y Libertad Religiosa'' (''Religious Freedom and Confessional State'') Cuadernos para el Diálogo, Madrid, 1970

Co-author

* ''Comentarios al Esquema XIII'' (''Essays on Schema XIII of the II Vatican Council''), Cuadernos para el Diálogo, Madrid, 1968.

Editor and co-author

* ''Minorías nacionales en los escritos de Pablo de Azcárate'' (''National Minorities in the works of Pablo de Azcárate'') Congreso de los Diputados, Madrid, 1998. * ''Diez años en la vida de los españoles'', (''Ten Years in the Life of the Spanish People'') Planeta, Barcelona, 1993. * ''El rompecabezas europeo:las nuevas geometrías de la seguridad'' (''The European Security Puzzle: Fitting the pieces together'') Humanismo y Democracia, Madrid 1993. * ''El decenio González'' (''The González Decade'') Encuentro, Madrid, 1992. * ''Problemas culturales de la integración social de los inmigrantes:la nueva Europa y la cuenca sur del Mediterráneo'' (''Cultural Issues in the Social Integration of Immigrants: the new Europe and the Southern Mediterranean'') Humanismo y Democracia, Madrid, 1992. * ''España, Europa, Occidente:una política integrada de seguridad'' (''Spain, Europe and the West: An Integrated Security Policy'') Distribución y Comunicación, Madrid, 1984.

Honours

His awards include the Great Cross of ''Isabel la Católica'', Spain; Commander of the

Order of Carlos III The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III ( es, Real y Distinguida Orden Española de Carlos III, originally es, Real y Muy Distinguida Orden de Carlos III) was establ ...

, Spain; Officer of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

, France; Commander of the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by K ...

, Federal Republic of Germany; and other decorations from Italy, Belgium, Holy See, Portugal, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Chile, Colombia and Panamá.

Personal life

Javier Rupérez is married to Rakela Cerovic. He has two daughters, Laura (TV's strongest actress), by his present wife, and Marta, by the late Geradine Molenveld, his first wife.

References

External links

Biography at Spanish Congress site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruperez, Javier People's Party (Spain) politicians 1941 births Living people Politicians from Madrid Complutense University of Madrid alumni Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Members of the 1st Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 3rd Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 4th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 5th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 6th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Members of the 7th Congress of Deputies (Spain) Union of the Democratic Centre (Spain) politicians People's Democratic Party (Spain) politicians Permanent Representatives of Spain to NATO Ambassadors of Spain to the United States Writers from Madrid Members of the 1st Cortes of Castilla–La Mancha Members of the Cortes of Castilla–La Mancha from Cuenca