The Philippine Ambassador to Lebanon Raymond R. Balatbat has assumed his post at the Philippine Embassy on 07 June 2021 after arriving on 23 May 2021. He previously served as Executive Director of the Office of Middle East and African Affairs (OMEAA) in the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Ambassador Balatbat has previously served tours of duty at the Philippine Embassies in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, where he was First Secretary and Consul General, then Minister and Consul General; Jakarta, Indonesia, where he was Third Secretary and Vice Consul, then Second Secretary and Consul; and Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where he was Third Secretary and Vice Consul.
In the Home Office, aside from OMEAA, he has also served in the DFA's Office of European Affairs (OEA); Office of ASEAN Affairs (ASEAN); and Office of Policy Planning and Coordination (OPPC).
Ambassador Balatbat finished his Masters in National Security Administration (MNSA) from the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP). He has also credited units in the Masters of Arts in Economics Program from the Ateneo De Manila University and the Masters in Business Administration Program from the De La Salle University. He completed his Bachelor of Arts (Major in English Literature) from the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.
Ambassador Balatbat is married to Ms. Celeste Vinzon Balatbat, who is currently Philippine Consul General to Nagoya, Japan. They have one daughter.
On 09 June 2021, H.E. Raymond Balatbat presented his Letters of Credence to H.E. Michel Aoun, President of the Lebanese Republic at the Presidential Palace, accrediting him as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Philippines to the Lebanese Republic.
H.E. Balatbat had the opportunity to discuss a number of bilateral issues during his meeting with President Aoun and expressed his desire to expand the bilateral relations between the Philippines and Lebanon and the two countries can also support each other’s multilateral advocacies.
President Aoun also wished him a successful tour of duty.
