Spain sets sights on “Latin America Year” ahead of summit

SPAIN wants to make 2023 the “Year of Latin America” in Europe. The Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, announced the country’s plans at the Ibero-American Summit as he touched down in Santo Domingo on Thursday, March 23 in Santo Domingo, alongside King Felipe VI.

Spain has ambitious goals for the summit in the Dominican Republic, with Albares saying they wanted “Latin America to be definitively at the heart of the European agenda with a work and financing programme”. He added that he wants to focus on Latin American relations when Spain assumes temporary leadership of the European Union in July.

Other priorities at the summit include the environment, digital rights for residents, and the development of new partnerships.

Foreign ministers from each of the countries are meeting on Friday, March 24, ahead of the conference officially opening on Saturday, March 25.

The summit is especially symbolic as it is the first to be held since the pandemic and since various global emergencies began, including the war in Ukraine and political turmoil in Haiti, both of which are important topics of discussion at the conference.