By Jochebed Kastaneer, MSc. On Friday 14^th of December, the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to the Kingdom of the Netherlands in collaboration with Diplomat Magazine and Diplomatic Card, hosted an exclusive Venezuelan Chocolate and Rum tasting. Via chocolate and rum, invitees experienced a guided sensory journey through the most beautiful regions of Venezuela, while physically remaining at the luxurious Crowne Plaza Hotel in the Hague. Awaiting the arrival H.E. Ms. Haifa Aissami Madah,  Ambassador  of  Venezuela Permanent Mission to the International  Organisations in The Hague, Mr. Wilhen Diaz Lara, Chargé d´Affaires a.i., and his colleagues personally and warmly welcomed all guest; ratifying that the best of Venezuela is the warm and friendly Venezuelan.

Ambassadors, Diplomats, entrepreneurs, economics advisers and friends were among the guests of honour who attended the evening. Viewing the conference style setup of the meeting room, one could already sense that a personal transformation to a higher level was about to take place. But the transformation and its altitude were nothing you could have imagined or think of, prior to attending the event. You kind of know that by accepting the invitation to a diplomatic chocolate and rum tasting, there is a high probability that you are happily and voluntarily going to change your vacation destination to the country the chocolate and rum is coming from.

But at the Venezuelan tasting this was just a minor side effect; reached within 5 minutes of arrival, by tasting the hors d’oeuvre of exquisite Venezuelan dark chocolate mousse, topped with raspberry. The unfolding of the layers and layers of flavour of the cacao pleasantly elevated our palate to a new level; we immediately knew what we didn’t know we didn’t know. We were left without words, unable to answer the simple question: how does it taste? Heaven?! Glowing skins, sparkling eyes and smiling faces revealing that the word ‘heaven’ might be an understatement. After we hovered to our seats, the renowned Ms. Annemarie van Leggelo, CEO of the prestigious Etiquette Bureau presented the program. She explained that we were embarking on a fun and exciting Masterclass and were about to become a true sommelier du chocolat! Mr. Wilhen Diaz Lara clarified that the masterclass was designed to make us become acquainted with the worldwide recognized Venezuelan cacao. In a way that we could distinguish the very high quality, colour, taste and smell of the Venezuelan cacao. The good news is that we don’t have to travel to Venezuela to enjoy Venezuelan chocolate: the premium Venezuelan chocolate is available in the EU. And it’s savoured best in combination with the Venezuelan rum.

Ms. Mariana de La Rosa, chocolate and cacao expert and founder of Puro Origen, was our honourable Masterclass professor, in charge of expanding our senses to see, hear, feel, smell and taste the Venezuelan cacao. Ms. de La Rosa kicked-off the masterclass with a brief cacao lesson, guiding us through the different cacaos of Venezuela, and allowing us to understand the difference that each region has to offer through the discovery of each flavour. Cacao for Venezuela stands for: heritage, history, genetics, terroir, tradition, culture and sense of place.

Venezuelan cacao is very exclusive: only Cacao Premium (15.300T/year) is produced in Venezuela, from which half of the production is consumed in Venezuela. As bugs are elemental for the pollination of the cacao, Venezuelan cacao is free of pesticides. The unique Venezuelan cacao ‘Porcelana’ is considered the Holy grail of Cacao, being one of the rarest and most expensive of all cacao beans in the world. To become a true chocolate sommelier, Ms. De La Rosa taught us how to master a 5 steps process of tasting fine chocolate:

1. See the chocolate; especially super premium chocolate looks a bit shiny;
2. Hear the chocolate by breaking it. The distinctive sound of the ‘snap’ when breaking the chocolate reveals information about the cacao to a true connoisseur;
3. Feel the chocolate;
4. Smell the aroma of the chocolate;
5. Taste the chocolate.

It then became a sacred experience to taste four of the premium Venezuelan chocolate separately; the ‘Rio Caribe’, ‘Carenero (70% cacao)’, ‘San Joaquim’ and ‘Sur del Lago (70% cacao)’; each of them an intense and unforgettable experience on its own.  One could clearly understand why the indigenous ancestors of Venezuela worshiped cacao.Thankfully Ms de La Rosa gave us the words of Darin Sukha to verbalize the experience: “A good piece of chocolate is like a good piece of music. It contains something memorable that stays on your mind for the entire day”. For the last part of the Masterclass Ms. de La Rosa appropriately introduced us to the Venezuelan Diplomático rum. Venezuelan rum is recognised as the finest rums in the world and Diplomático is a unique rum blending with unmistakable character and irresistible and subtle aromas. Can you picture combining this exquisite rum with the finest chocolate? It’s a magical ride exceeding all your expectations! We tasted the following combinations of rum and chocolate:

1. Diplomático rum Mantuano (8 year- old blend) paired with Carenero chocolate (61% cacao);
2. Diplomático rum Planas (6-year-old blend) paired with Carenero superior white chocolate (34% cacao);
3. Diplomático rum Reserva Exclusiva (12-year-old blend) paired with Carenero superior chocolate (70% cacao).

Once you experience this perfection, you can’t go back. Your universe is now expanded for ever with the ‘two ambassadors of Venezuela: rum and chocolate’ as the Representant Permanent Ms. Haifa Aissami Madah, remarked in her closing address. Luckily, we reached this higher level of consciousness right before the holidays and are able to savour these beautiful treasures of Venezuela right here in the Netherlands. ————– Photography by Naldo Peverelli, group of images is a courtesy of Sarai Aser.

Coen Masselink, Des Indes General Manager and speaker Rem Korteweg together with ambassadors attending the conference. In the most traditional Des Indes style, Ambassadors and heads of missions participated in a lunch conference on an extremely sensitive issue, Brexit, at a time where no one knows how this situation will evolve. For additional Kim Vermaat’s pictures, please open the following link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/109407424@N02/albums/72157674623421627

The “Ambassador’s Lunch” initiative is a series of lunch-conferences organized by the experienced General Manager of Des Indes, Coen Masselink, to give the opportunity to Ambassadors and heads of missions to discuss contemporary political subjects with Dutch experts. For the Brexit conference, the guest speaker was Mr. Rem Korteweg, Head of “Europe in the World” unit at Clingendael Research department.

After a short reception and a Des Indes signature lunch, the talks started. The theme of the conference was “Brexit means Brexit,” a concise formula that reflects the current status of the developments between the United Kingdom and the European Union.

Mr Korteweg analyzed different scenarios, showing objectivity and evident knowledge. He touched upon a wide range of topics, including the Parliament’s potential decision to fully review the text, the political approaches taken by different actors, the tensions of the financial markets, the risks associated to Brexit, the possibility of a second referendum, the complex issue of Gibraltar, the no-deal scenario, and the implication of Brexit for the credibility of EU.

In the three months to come, the future scenario should take shape more clearly. March 29th will come soon, and in the meanwhile Brussels will likely wait, as the EU cannot do much. As soon as the talk by Mr. Korteweg came to an end, the questions period started, and several ambassadors, notably H.E. Mr. Matthew Neuhaus, Ambassador of Australia and H.E. Mr. Kevin Kelly, ambassador of Ireland, participated with substantial contributions to the complex theme.

At exactly 2:00 pm, in full compliance with the schedule, Mr. Masselink thanked the speaker and the guests and concluded the formal part of the event. Nevertheless, many guests remained in the room to exchange views with Korteweg on the issue of Brexit.

By Guido Lanfranchi.

 

Speaking from Brussels in the midst of meetings with NATO and European allies, the US Special Representative for Ukraine, Ambassador Kurt Volker, condemns Russia for the lack of progress in resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine, as well as for the recent escalations in the Kerch Strait.

 

 

Almost five years after its start, the conflict in Ukraine shows no signs of winding down. Rather, after a long period of stall, tensions have recently soared as a result of the confrontation between Ukraine and Russia in the Kerch Strait. With both sides accusing each other of staging a provocation, the rhetoric has flared up again: Ukraine has temporarily declared martial law in ten regions, while Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused his Ukrainian counterpart to exploit the incident for electoral purposes.

 

On this backdrop, the US Special Representative for Ukraine, Ambassador Kurt Volker, is currently in Europe for consultations with NATO and European partners. The aim of all these parties – Ambassador Volker stressed while addressing the press – is to put an end to the conflict, ensuring peace and security for the Ukrainian people. In order to achieve such aim, Ukraine, the US and their partners remain committed to the Minsk agreements, however, on the Russian side there is no collaboration – the Special Representative said.

 

Ambassador Volker firmly condemned Russia’s denial of involvement in eastern Ukraine, as well as the non constructive attitude of its Russian counterparts in the negotiations. Notably, he blamed Russia for showing no willingness to find an agreement on a series of proposals, including an exchange of prisoners with Ukraine and a United Nation peacekeeping mission proposed by the US.

 

 Ambassador Volker also accused Russia of being entirely responsible for the current escalation in the Kerch Strait, blaming it of infringing on Ukraine’s sovereignty and breaching several provisions of international law. While a swift release of the imprisoned Ukrainian soldiers does not seem in sight, the US Special Representative welcomed the unity showed by the US, NATO and European countries in calling for the release of the servicemen.

 

Ambassador Volker also dismissed the rumours of Ukraine preparing for an offensive in Donetsk as “assertions made by pro-Russian entities in order to deflect attention away from what Russia is doing”. Instead, he praised the restraint showed by Ukraine in responding to Russian provocations, for instance in the Black Sea.

 

Questioned by the press on the potential countermeasures to be taken by the US and its allies, Ambassador Volker outlined some of the options on the table. Sanctions certainly remain a valuable tool, especially if used by a broad range of allies in a coordinated way. Moreover, Ambassador Volker stressed the need for a “multinational visible presence in and around Ukraine,” both from a political and military standpoint. Finally, he noted that the US is ready to provide foreign military financing and foreign military sales to Ukraine, and that announcements in this regard are set to come up in the next months.

 

While the conflict continues, engagement from all parties continue too. With the hope that the suffering of the people involved will end as soon as possible.

 

 

 

 

 

H.E. Mr. Fernando Arias, and the Vice Minister of Multilateral Affairs, H.E. Ms. Adriana Mejia.

On the picture the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), H.E. Mr. Fernando Arias, and the Permanent Representative of the Czech Republic to the OPCW and the Chairperson of the Executive Council, H. E. Ms. Ambassador Jana Reinišová.

OPCW and Municipality of Pijnacker-Nootdorp Sign Land Agreement for Future OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology