AnÃbal Villalba is Chief Strategy & Public Affairs Officer at PLD Space, the first private European company to successfully launch a rocket into space in October 2023, positioning Spain as one of the ten countries with such capabilities.
After studying at the Academia General Militar in Spain, he earned a Ph.D. in Political Science and Sociology from UNED with a doctoral thesis titled “Cybersecurity in Spain 2011-2015: A Proposed Organizational Model.” He also holds a Master’s degree in Analysis and Management of Public Policies from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid.
In his military career, AnÃbal Villalba is an Infantry Colonel and a General Staff graduate. His most recent position was Defense, Military, Naval, and Air Attaché at the Spanish Embassies in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, and Bahrain, based in Riyadh (2017-2020). Other assignments include serving with the Airborne Brigade, Crisis Plans at NATO Headquarters in Naples, Professor of Strategy and International Relations at the General Staff Course, Commander of a Mechanized Infantry Battalion, and the Spanish Embassy in Beirut. He graduated from the U.S. Infantry School Officer Advanced Course at Fort Benning, GA, in 1989. He has also served in seven overseas operations with the UN, EU, and NATO in Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Lebanon
Additionally, he has held various positions such as Senior Advisor in the Office of the Spanish Prime Minister, Senior Advisor to the Director of National Intelligence, Director of the National Cybersecurity Plan, and Strategic Planning Director at the State-Owned Real Estate Management Company SEGIPSA.
He is the author of 21 publications on intelligence, international security, terrorism, and cybersecurity.
He speaks Spanish, English, French, Italian, and Portuguese.