Soledad Alvear

Overview

María Soledad Alvear Valenzuela born Santiago, Chile September 17, 1950. First woman Foreign Minister of Chile 2000 improved relations with US and Europe; first minister of Women's Affairs; as Justice Minister replaced colonial criminal code; tried to prevent Iraq War.

Quotations

On the Iraq War: "We advocate a solution that is consistent with international law and with the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations. This is the only source of legitimacy for our agreements and collective decisions.
· We emphasize the need to adopt collective measures to prevent and eliminate threats to peace.
· We strenuously seek every possible means of achieving a peaceful solution to problems. This is a principle that we have historically promoted and we are determined to continue to work towards its realization." (UN Security Council, Nov. 7, 2003; photo Wikipedia)