Ricardo Arias (politician)

Ricardo Arias Espinosa (5 April 1912 – 15 March 1993) was the 29th President of Panama.

Born in Washington, D.C. from a prominent Panamanian political family, Arias studied at universities in the United States, Colombia and Chile. He became Second Vice President of Panama in 1952, and served as president from March 29, 1955 to October 1, 1956. He belonged to the National Patriotic Coalition (CNP).

After leaving office in 1956, he served as the Panamanian Ambassador to the United States during the 1960s and in the Board of Directors of numerous companies in Panama. He died in 1993 in Panama City.

His son, Ricardo Alberto Arias, has been minister of foreign affairs and the Panamanian ambassador to the United Nations.