The Diplomat
King Philip VI received yesterday at the Royal Palace in Madrid some thirty Defense attachés accredited in Spain, among them the Ukrainian Embassy. For her part, the President of the Congress, Meritxell Batet, will visit today the refugee aid centers on the Polish-Ukrainian border.
The King received the attachés of Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Korea, United States, Egypt, El Salvador, Philippines, France, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, Italy, Morocco, Mexico, Netherlands, Peru, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Thailand, Ukraine, Uruguay and Vietnam, according to the Royal House.
The military attaché or Defense attaché is a rank assigned to the person of the Embassy or Diplomatic Mission, under the authority of the ambassador, specialized in military matters. It is generally held by an officer of the Armed Forces, whether Army, Navy or Air Force, who may fulfill all or some of the combined functions of military attaché, naval attaché, air attaché and even police attaché.
In the case of the Ukrainian Embassy, the post of Defense, Military, Naval and Air attaché corresponds to Colonel Serhii Vtorykh, whom the Monarch, dressed in the uniform of Admiral General of the Navy, greeted with a handshake in the Official Chamber of the Royal Palace.
This was not Philip VI’s first gesture of support to the Ukrainian Army, almost two months after the beginning of the Russian invasion. Last February 28, during the inauguration of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the King denounced “the unacceptable aggression” of Russia against Ukraine and defended “the respect of International Law by all States, without exception”. Likewise, on March 13, during an event on the island of La Palma, he expressed his repulsion for the Russian attack, which reminded him of “the worst moments of the past”, and eight days later, during the presentation of the National Innovation and Design Awards, he said he was “moved and outraged by the tragedy and horror suffered by the Ukrainian people”.
On the other hand, Meritxell Batet went to Poland yesterday to visit, this Wednesday, the refugee aid centers on the border with Ukraine in order to know the situation of the people who have fled the war after the Russian invasion, as reported by the Congress. Since the start of the war, more than 4.5 million people, mostly women and children, have fled Ukraine. Of these, 2.6 million have moved to Poland.
In particular, the President of the Lower House will visit the Dorohusk border crossing point, the Lwowska refugee reception point and the Ptak humanitarian aid center in Nadarzyn. Meritxell Batet has been invited by the President of the Polish Parliament, Elzbieta Witek, and will visit these centers together with the Vice-President of the European Parliament, Heidi Hautala, the Second Vice-President of the Ukrainian Parliament, Olena Kondratiuk, and other counterparts from EU countries in the framework of the meeting of Women Speakers of Parliaments. During her visit, Batet will have the opportunity to compare the measures adopted by the different Member States to help Ukrainian refugees, as well as the coordination instruments within the European Union.
Likewise, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, will visit today the Malaga refugee center for the reception, care and referral of Ukrainian refugees, where he will meet with those responsible for the center and tour the facilities set up in the FYCMA Trade Fair and Congress Center of Malaga.
