The Diplomat
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will tour Latin America next week, taking him to Colombia, Ecuador and Honduras, Moncloa said yesterday.
The tour, Sánchez’s first to the region this year, will begin on 23 August in Bogotá, where he will have the opportunity to meet the new Colombian president, the leftist Gustavo Petro, who took office on 7 August.
After Petro and his running mate, the Afro-Colombian social leader Francia Márquez, won the election, the head of the Spanish government congratulated them and welcomed the fact that the citizens of his country had opted for “equality and social justice”.
At that time, Sánchez had already expressed his commitment to continue strengthening the ties that unite both countries, something that he will now be able to convey in person to Gustavo Petro.
Sánchez will arrive in Colombia, days after the controversy created by the criticisms that his government partners, from Unidas Podemos, made against the King for remaining seated in front of the supposed sword of Simón Bolivar, an act that was not on the programme for Petro’s inauguration.
The Prime Minister was already in Colombia in August 2018 as part of his first visit to the region after his arrival at the Palacio de la Moncloa, and when Iván Duque was President of the Ibero-American country.
On the other hand, it will be the first time he visits Ecuador and Honduras since he assumed the Presidency of the Government.
After his stay in Colombia, Pedro Sánchez will travel to Quito to meet with the Ecuadorian President, Guillermo Lasso, as part of a programme that has not yet been made public by Moncloa. Lasso announced on Tuesday that he was travelling to Houston (United States) for tests after being diagnosed with carcinoma.
The last stage of the tour, which will last until 27 August, will take the head of government to Tegucigalpa, where he is expected to meet with the country’s president, the leftist Xiomara Castro, who has been in power since January.
Pedro Sánchez will discuss bilateral matters with the three Ibero-American leaders, but also economic and trade issues, as evidenced by the fact that he will be accompanied on the trip from Madrid by a group of Spanish businessmen.
He is also expected to address the relations of the three countries and the Latin American region with the European Union; some global challenges, such as the fight against climate change and the consequences that the war in Ukraine is having on the whole world, including high inflation.
