The Diplomat
The Real Casino de Madrid will host the 10th Spain-China Forum on February 5th and 6th. Organized by the Spain-China Council Foundation (FCEC), the forum will focus on topics including sports diplomacy, bilateral investments, e-commerce, legal cooperation, and business cooperation.
According to the Council Foundation, the event will begin on Thursday, February 5th, at 5:30 p.m. The opening ceremony will be presided over by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares; a Chinese government official (to be determined); and the presidents of the FCEC and the Association of Friendship of the Chinese People with Foreign Countries (AAPCE), Oskar Goitia and Yang Wanming, respectively.
Following the opening ceremony, the first session of the Forum, dedicated to sports diplomacy, will take place. Participants will include the president of LALIGA, Javier Tebas; Rafael Louzán, president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation; The president of the Chinese Football Association, Song Kai, and Li Kemin, president of the Chinese Professional Football League.
Prior to the start of the sessions, the Forum will host the signing of two memoranda of understanding between some of the main sports institutions of Spain and China. LALIGA and the Royal Spanish Football Federation will sign separate collaboration agreements with the Chinese Football Association to develop various joint initiatives and programs.
The following day, February 6, the second session will be divided into two panels: the first dedicated to Chinese-Spanish investment access systems and regulatory compliance in e-commerce, and the second on Spain’s role as a bridge to Latin America. Participants in these two panels include prominent jurists and law professors from universities in both countries.
The third and final session, dedicated to business cooperation, will then take place. It will be moderated by the Director General of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Inmaculada Riera, and will feature executives from Chinese and Spanish companies such as Chery Automotive, Gestamp, Gotion, CIC Energigune, and Geely Auto, among others.
The Forum will conclude around 12:30 PM with remarks from the presidents of the FCEC and the AAPCE, as well as the Chinese Ambassador to Spain, Yao Jing, and the Secretary of State for Trade, Amparo López Senovilla.
The 10th Spain-China Forum is organized by the Spain-China Council Foundation (FCEC) and the Association of Friendship of the Chinese People with Foreign Countries (AAPCE), with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This Forum is the main platform for dialogue between civil societies in China and Spain. It is held alternately in each country, and each edition focuses on strategic issues for the bilateral relationship.
Established in 2004, the Spain-China Council Foundation is Spain’s leading public diplomacy institution dedicated to China. It is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Its Board of Trustees comprises companies, public entities, and universities committed to relations between Spain and China and with a significant presence in the Asian country, as well as senior officials from the Spanish Administration and the Spanish Embassy in China.
