The Diplomat
The President of the Republic of Estonia, Kersti Kaljulaid, will pay a working visit to Spain next Monday, the 8th, as part of the commemoration of the centenary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, which is being celebrated this year.
During her stay in Madrid, Kersti Kaljulaid will be received by His Majesty the King, who will offer her a lunch at the Palacio de la Zarzuela, and will go to the Palacio de la Moncloa to meet with the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez.
She will also meet with the President of the Congress of Deputies, Meritxell Batet, and will attend a dinner hosted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Arancha González Laya, at the Palacio de Viana.
The Estonian President also plans to inaugurate a photographic exhibition and to participate in an event organized by the Elcano Royal Institute on the theme: “Looking beyond the pandemic: Europe and the rest of the world”.
According to a note from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the visit of President Kaljulaid “will allow to address the state of our bilateral relationship, in the context of such a significant anniversary, as well as other issues in foreign policy, European neighborhood, security and digitization, the latter area in which Estonia stands out for its high level of development”.
Spain recognized Estonia’s independence on March 8, 1921, so Kersti Kaljulaid’s visit will take place on the same day as the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Madrid and Tallinn. In addition, this year will also mark the 30th anniversary of Spain’s re-recognition of Estonian independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Our country is very committed to the defense of the Baltic States from possible Russian threats through the ‘Enhanced Forward Presence’ of the Atlantic Alliance, with troops deployed, especially in Latvia, but it is also present in NATO’s Center of Excellence for cyber defense, which is based in Tallinn, and which is currently headed by a Spanish military officer.
Trade relations with Estonia, a country of only 1.3 million inhabitants, are small, with trade exchanges of around 200 million euros a year and little investment, although there are possibilities of expanding them, especially in the infrastructure sector. For example, several Spanish companies, such as CAF, Talgo, Indra and Idom, are bidding for projects related to Rail Baltica, the high-speed rail network that will connect Finland with Poland, crossing Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
