Miguel Ángel Ballesteros facts for kids
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Miguel Ángel Ballesteros
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| 3rd Director of the Homeland Security Department | |
| In office 19 June 2018 – 29 November 2023 |
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| Monarch | Felipe VI |
| Prime Minister | Pedro Sánchez |
| Preceded by | Cristina Ysasi-Ysasmendi Pemán |
| Succeeded by | Loreto Gutiérrez Hurtado |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Miguel Ángel Ballesteros Martín
1953 Segovia, Spain |
| Education | General Military Academy University of Valencia Pontifical University of Salamanca |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Spain |
| Branch/service | Spanish Army |
| Years of service | 1972–2023 |
| Rank | Brigadier general |
Miguel Ángel Ballesteros (born in 1953) is a retired officer from the Spanish Army. He is known as an expert in understanding how countries interact (called geopolitics) and in keeping people safe from dangers like terrorism. From June 2018 to November 2023, he was the director of Spain's Homeland Security Department. This department works within the Prime Minister's Office to help keep the country secure.
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His Life and Training
Miguel Ángel Ballesteros was born in Segovia, Spain, in 1953. He joined the General Military Academy in 1972. He chose to specialize in artillery, which deals with large guns and cannons. The academy for artillery was in his hometown of Segovia.
After finishing his studies, he became an Artillery Lieutenant in 1976. He worked in different roles within the artillery branch and in the General Staff, which helps plan military operations. One important job was at the Operational Military Research Center of the Ministry of Defence.
Education and Special Skills
Ballesteros studied a lot to become an expert. He earned a degree in Operational Research from the University of Valencia in 1979. This field uses math and logic to solve problems and make better decisions. He also completed a special course for the General Staff in 1991.
He studied strategy and world politics at the National University of Distance Education. Later, he earned a PhD (a very high university degree) from the Pontifical University of Salamanca. His special project for his PhD was about how to create a plan for national security. This work was so good that he received a special award in 2015.
Becoming a Security Expert
Miguel Ángel Ballesteros became a specialist in geopolitics and in preventing terrorism. Geopolitics is about how geography and politics affect each other. He also focused on preventing jihadism, which is a type of religious extremism.
From 1995 to 2012, he was a professor at the Pontifical University of Salamanca. Since 2015, he has also taught at the Complutense University of Madrid. He has led many summer courses at different universities, sharing his knowledge. He also helps teach a master's program on preventing terrorism at the Rey Juan Carlos University.
He was the first person to lead the "Spanish Helios Main Center." This center worked with a special international satellite program called HELIOS. This program used satellites from French, Italian, and Spanish to gather information. From 2002 to 2008, he was in charge of the Strategy and International Relations Department at the College of the Armed Forces.
In 2009, he became the General Director of the Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies (IEEE). This institute studies important topics related to Spain's safety and future. As an expert in security and preventing extremism, he has written many articles and often shares his ideas with the media.
Leading the Homeland Security Department
On June 19, 2018, Miguel Ángel Ballesteros was chosen to be the third director of the Homeland Security Department. This department gives advice to the Cabinet Office, which is part of the government. Its main job is to help the Prime Minister make decisions about national security.
He was the first director of this department who was not also the Deputy Chief of Staff for the Prime Minister's Office. This showed how important his role was. He retired from his position in late 2023.
See also
In Spanish: Miguel Ángel Ballesteros Martín para niños
