Honduras relies on Spain’s support to host the 2028 Ibero-American Summit

Eduardo González The Honduran ambassador to Madrid, Marlon Brevé, has expressed his hope that Spain will support his country's bid to host the 31st Ibero-American Summit, to be held in 2028. He also affirmed that Spain and Honduras will continue to strengthen bilateral relations during Nasry Asfura's new presidency and that the new conservative government in Tegucigalpa will make an effort to improve citizen security without violating human rights. “Honduras is a candidate to host the next Ibero-American Summit,” the ambassador declared during his address at the “Diplomatic Breakfasts” series, organized by The Diplomat in Spain in collaboration with the Honduran Embassy and held this Wednesday at the Prensamedia headquarters in Madrid. His remarks inaugurated a series in which diplomatic representatives accredited in Spain will be invited to discuss the main challenges, opportunities, and perspectives of their countries in the global context. “Honduras is seeking Spain’s support, hopefully, in this candidacy to become the Pro Tempore Secretary of the Ibero-American General Secretariat,” he continued. “Honduras has been one of the few countries, along with Nicaragua, that has never hosted this summit,” the ambassador noted. Furthermore, Marlon Brevé confirmed that President Nasry Asfura has already confirmed his attendance at the 30th Summit, to be held in Madrid in November 2026. In fact, during the official presentation of the Madrid Summit, the Ibero-American Secretary General (SEGIB), Andrés Allamand, announced in October 2025 that Honduras and Panama had submitted their bids to host the 2028 conference. Regarding this, Marlon Brevé expressed confidence that the Madrid Summit will be a success, unlike the previous Summit in Ecuador, which saw very low attendance from heads of state. “Spain holds the presidency of the Ibero-American General Secretariat and the Pro Tempore Secretariat of SEGIB,” and in this context, is “working diligently” to “strengthen this Ibero-American community, because the previous Summit was not very successful,” he stated. Furthermore, according to the ambassador, Spain is “trying to ensure that the topics addressed not only generate declarations, but also concrete actions, and that they prioritize issues that are important for development.” One of these is the effectiveness of the Global Gateway Investment Agenda, “which is not just for Spain, it's for all of Europe,” and the other issue “is accepting that differences can arise within the dialogue,” he continued. “After what happened in Ecuador, the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB) has implemented a positive practice: that countries can disassociate themselves from a declaration, which allows for continued dialogue, progress on points of agreement, and where there are differences, the country disassociates itself,” he emphasized. “Honduras hopes that the community will return to dialogue, that issues such as the fight against organized crime and democracy will be prioritized, that we will work together, even though we have different ideologies; that in the end the implementation of public policy measures will prevail, that the well-being of the vast majority will be sought in order to eradicate poverty, which, in some countries, like Honduras, is 60%,” he added. Bilateral relations Regarding the state of relations between Spain and Honduras following the arrival of the conservative Nasry Asfura to the Presidency, the ambassador expressed his conviction that the two countries will continue “cultivating the positive state of bilateral relations” and noted that the only outstanding issue at this time is related to “the political consultations that take place annually.” “It is time to hold one in Honduras, and the State Secretary for Ibero-America, Susana Sumelzo, has already mentioned that among her goals is to visit Honduras to conduct the political consultation process,” stated the ambassador, who is nearing the end of his mission in Spain, which began in December 2022 under the Presidency of Xiomara Castro. Regarding cooperation relations, Brevé recalled that both countries signed “a Sustainable Development Partnership framework in June of last year, on the occasion of the United Nations Summit on Financing for Development (held in Seville),” which entails “a commitment from Spain to invest 300 million euros in Honduras over the next four years.” “Of those 300 million euros, 200 million are non-reimbursable funds,” and therefore, “we have alerted all political leaders in Honduras, especially mayors, that this is a great opportunity, because the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) prefers that these non-reimbursable funds be implemented through partnerships between Spanish and Honduran municipalities and NGOs,” he continued. “We are always grateful for everything that Spain, not only at the political level with these country partnership agreements, but also at the level of investors, contributes to the development of Honduras,” he affirmed. “I belong to the generation that still calls Spain the ‘Mother Country,’ and I believe Honduras views Spain very favorably,” he affirmed. “Spain is currently a leader in Europe,” he continued. “Globally, it has demonstrated its solidarity regarding the hantavirus issue, and I believe its leadership on geopolitical matters is commendable,” he asserted. Furthermore, he went on, Spain is an “example” of “economic growth based on industries like tourism.” “We want to share and replicate these best practices and pursue these approaches to sustainable development through tourism, integrating it with industry and flagship products like tobacco, coffee, and cacao,” he added. Brevé also noted that Spain is home to the second largest Honduran community in the world, with 250,000 people, second only to the United States (1.5 million). For this same reason, Spain is also the source of the second largest share of remittances from Honduran emigrants, totaling one billion dollars (ten percent of the global total). Honduras receives approximately 10 billion dollars annually in remittances, the vast majority of which, 8 billion, comes from the United States. Political change in Honduras Regarding the new president, Nasry Asfura, who has received the express support of US President Donald Trump, Marlon Brevé acknowledged that his rise to power exemplifies the growing division of Latin America into “two blocs, a left-wing bloc and a right-wing bloc.” “Honduras has moved from the left-wing bloc to the right-wing bloc, and we are part of a group called the Shield for the Americas,” he stated. “Our president attended a meeting in Florida with several presidents of countries with right-wing governments who pledged to combat organized crime to promote greater citizen security, and we have a neighboring country that is doing very well in terms of security,” he explained, referring to El Salvador. However, he admitted that the Salvadoran model “cannot be directly applied in Honduras; we are different, all countries are different, we are unique, but an effort will be made to improve citizen security without violating human rights.” “There are many human rights organizations in Honduras,” he noted. The issue of security, he affirmed, “remains a challenge.” “Ten or fifteen years ago, there were more than 80 violent deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, and now we are at around 23,” a figure that “is still high, and we need to bring it closer to the Latin American average, which is above ten,” he explained. “This government continues to make a great effort to lower that statistic, and it is a great challenge for all governments to find that balance between citizen security with tough policies, but with respect for human rights,” he added. Trade: US, EU, China, and Taiwan According to Marlon Brevé, Honduras is trying to “position itself” in this new political stage to create greater economic development and improve its international standing through “economic diplomacy,” which, he affirmed, “has been demonstrated by the efforts made by President Asfura and his cabinet to seek economic, commercial, and political allies to promote greater trade and attract foreign investment, while also protecting existing private investment in Honduras, both national and foreign.” “A strong message has been sent to the international community: we want to be seen as a reliable partner for investment, trade, and international cooperation,” he affirmed. In this context, he noted that Honduras has “several free trade agreements,” including a “key” agreement with the European Union, which “was negotiated as a Central American bloc” and “whose trade component came into effect a year ago.” This agreement “opens markets because it allows Central American products easier access to the European market and, at the same time, increases European investment in the region,” he emphasized. He added that there is also “the Global Gateway investment agenda, which the European Union announced when Spain held the presidency” of the EU Council in 2023, and thanks to which “Honduras already has two projects” underway: one for the construction of a dam for flood control and another for power generation. On the other hand, Brevé admitted that “the United States remains our main trading partner, that's not going to change.” However, “Honduran producers are looking for allies, businesspeople to invest in Honduras and together strengthen exports with added value.” “We are looking to Europe, but we must also recognize that we are looking to Asia,” he emphasized. “In the past, we exported to Japan, Taiwan, and Korea, but since Honduras established political and trade relations with China, we are now exporting to China, and this government currently faces the challenge of deciding whether to maintain the political and trade relationship with China and what will happen with Taiwan,” he acknowledged.

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