“This has to be the year we relaunch and intensify our links”, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Ignacio Ybáñez, said yesterday, during the reception given by the Indian Ambassador to Spain, Vikram Misr, on the occasion of the Republic of India Day.
Misr and Ybáñez (both in the top photograph with the logo designed by Juan García, that represents the commemoration of 60 years of bilateral diplomatic relations) alluded to the values shared by both countries –democracy, multilateralism, human rights, peace and cooperation- as the “the most solid foundation” to strengthen links that become closer all the time.
After reviewing the numerous bilateral visits that took place in 2015, Ybáñez stressed his desire that the economic, trade, cultural and political exchanges –the latter in the field of defence and security- developed during 2015 should increase and be consolidated in 2016. In order to do so, he said, “the signing of the Free Trade Agreement between India and the European Union would be an important stimulus”.
The Secretary of State highlighted the work carried out by the Casa de la India and Casa Asia, which he encouraged to redouble their efforts and expressed his gratitude for the “work of the Ambassador Vikram Misr and his team in the Embassy in respect of all the projects under way”.
Among these projects, he particularly mentioned tourism where he strongly supported improving “our direct flight connections”, scientific and technological cooperation which will “receive a big boost in 2016 through the public research centres in both countries”, the academic sphere, which will be led by the II Think Tanks Forum. Finally he announced that Madrid and Delhi would shortly sign a twinning agreement and sincerely hoped that Madrid’s candidature to host the Bollywood Oscars ceremony would prosper.
The reception was also attended by the Secretary-General for Defence Policy, Alejandro Alvargonzález, representing the Spanish Government; the Director-General for North America, Asia and the Pacific, Fidel Sendagorta; the Director of Casa Asia, Ramón Moreno and the Director-General of United Nations of the MAEC, Francisco Javier Sanabria, in addition to numerous Heads of Mission, among them Pakistan, China, Indonesia, North Korea, New Zealand, Serbia, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, France, Malta, Poland, Ukraine, Guatemala, Palestine and Israel.
Text and photos: A.R./J.D.L. 27/01/2016
[hr style=”single”]
The Indian and Pakistani Ambassadors and their wives.
The Guatemalan Ambassador Carla María Rodríguez and her Palestinian colleague, Musa Amer Odeh.
The Director-General for North America, Asia and the Pacific of the MAEC, Fidel Sendagorta, with the Director of Programmes of Casa Asia in Madrid, Teresa Gutiérrez.
The Ambassador of the Czech Republic, Katerina Lukesova, with the Slovakian Ambassador, Vladimir Gracz.
Third Secretary at the Indian Embassy, Sneha Bahuguna, with the painter Francisca Blázquez.
