The Diplomat
The United States Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, will visit Spain and Portugal from 21 to 23, making him the first member of Joe Biden’s Administration to travel to our country, according to the Department of Homeland Security yesterday.
Mayorkas is travelling to the Iberian Peninsula, with the aim of representing his country at a ministerial meeting on Justice and Home Affairs between the European Union and the United States, to be held in Lisbon, where he plans to meet with Portuguese authorities and the European Commission.
On Wednesday, the 23rd, the US Secretary of Homeland Security will be in Madrid, where, according to his department’s announcement, he will also meet with senior government officials to reaffirm the “bilateral relationship and deepen cooperation on shared priorities”.
In announcing the visit, the United States stressed that Mayorkas’ intention is to address with his European colleagues common security threats, including violent extremism and cybercrime, as well as migration and mobility issues, among others.
One of his meetings in Madrid, according to Europa Press, will be with Fernando Grande-Marlaska, Spain’s interior minister and his Spanish counterpart. With him, he plans to discuss migration challenges and cybercrime.
Mayorkas, who was appointed by Biden to the post last February, already spoke telematically with Grande-Marlaska on 15 April in an initial meeting in which they pledged to strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
At this Wednesday’s meeting, both political leaders are scheduled to appear jointly at a press conference at the headquarters of the Ministry of the Interior.
Mayorkas’ visit to Spain will take place a week after the fleeting conversation between the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, and US President Biden during the NATO summit in Brussels.
