The Diplomat
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, will receive the head of the Spanish government, Pedro Sánchez, at the White House on 12 May, both governments confirmed yesterday.
Sánchez, who, after a series of brief contacts at various international meetings, was able to talk more slowly with Biden in Madrid during the NATO summit in June last year, had been waiting for a long time for an invitation from the US president to travel to Washington.
In recent months, Moncloa and Spanish diplomacy have been working to try to arrange a visit, which will take place precisely on the day that the campaign for the regional and municipal elections of 28 May gets underway.
Sánchez wanted the opportunity to visit the White House, something he did not try to do during the years when he coincided with Donald Trump at the helm of the United States, but which he has sought insistently since Biden came to power.
With an ideologically closer president and the need to make the NATO summit a success, the Spanish Prime Minister has cultivated closer ties with the United States and its international policy approaches. A proof of this, according to many observers, is the shift in policy on Western Sahara, aligning himself with support for Morocco, which is the United States’ great ally in North Africa.
To achieve this, Sánchez has had to arm himself with patience in the face of criticism from his coalition partners, who did not approve of his Atlanticism or his new policy towards Morocco.
In any case, for the Prime Minister, an image with Biden in Washington is an important asset in the middle of an election year, and, moreover, on the eve of Spain’s assumption of the rotating presidency of the European Union. In fact, yesterday the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said when announcing the visit, that in the interview, the two leaders ‘will coordinate on a variety of issues as Spain prepares to take over the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union in July, such as climate change and expanded cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean’.
The US spokeswoman also indicated that the meeting will serve to further strengthen the historic ties between the two countries and that, at the meeting, “they will review their efforts as NATO allies and close partners to strengthen the bilateral relationship on defence, transatlantic security and economic prosperity”.
She also said that Biden and Sánchez ‘will discuss unwavering support for Ukraine and efforts to impose costs on the Kremlin as Russia continues its brutal war of aggression’.
Moncloa agreed that the two presidents will reaffirm their commitment to the transatlantic link and to firm support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression. And it was stressed that Spain and the United States are “friends, partners and allies” and that, as a result, existing cooperation in numerous areas will be reviewed.
Similarly, Moncloa stressed the proximity of the Spanish Presidency of the EU, and that Sánchez will inform Biden of the priorities for this six-month period. It was also stressed that there will be agreement on strengthening US-Spanish cooperation in Latin America and the Caribbean, and they will discuss how to face global challenges together, such as the climate emergency and the defence of democracy and an international order based on rules.
