The Diplomat
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, inaugurated yesterday at the ministerial headquarters of Marqués de Salamanca, in Madrid, the exhibition Cities of the Presidency: a European tour of Spain, which shows the 25 Spanish cities that will host some high-level event during the Presidency of the EU Council and that will be exhibited in Adif railway stations throughout the country.
“This is the graphic expression that brings the European Presidency closer to the citizens, while projecting the diversity and richness of our country in Europe,” Albares said during the inauguration. “Beyond beautiful photographs, this exhibition responds to the principles set by this Government of a decentralized Presidency that is close to the citizens”. The exhibition is made with funds from the photographic archive of the EFE Agency.
On July 1, Spain will assume the Presidency of the EU for the fifth time in its history and will not do so again until 2037. “Designed as a country project, the Government wants to involve all the Autonomous Communities in the Presidency and also wants to get closer to the citizens,” according to a press release from the Foreign Ministry. During this European semester, Spain will host more than 300 technical, cultural and citizen participation events, in addition to informal ministerial meetings and the informal European Council of Heads of State and Government.
A European tour through Spain offers a look at the 25 Spanish cities that will host a high-level event during the Presidency and has a double objective, according to the Ministry: “to show that Spain’s foreign action in the EU is a State policy that is structured throughout the national territory and, on the other hand, to give visibility to the involvement of all the Autonomous Communities”.
The exhibition, consisting of 25 panels with photographs from the EFE Agency archive, will travel to different parts of Spain through the Adif Open Station Program, launched by Adif in 2008 as part of its commitment to Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability. It is estimated that more than 150 million people pass through Adif stations every year.
In total, the exhibition will be on display at twelve Adif stations throughout the country: A Coruña (May 22-June 4), Valladolid-Campo Grande (June 5-June 17), Santander (June 18-June 30), Logroño (July 1-July 16), San Sebastián (July 17-28), Madrid-Puerta de Atocha-Almudena Grandes (July 29-August 13), Barcelona- Estació de França (August 14-August 27), Zaragoza Delicias (28 August-10 September), Toledo (11 September-23 September), Valencia Estació del Nord (24 September-7 October), Murcia del Carmen (8 October-21 October) and Seville Santa Justa (22 October-5 November).
