The Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, is visiting the Czech Republic on Tuesday 15 and Wednesday 16 April with the aim of further deepening the excellent bilateral relations through the signing of a Political Consultation Agreement to strengthen future bilateral contacts and to serve as a new instrument for deepening the political relationship.
During the meeting with his counterpart, Jan Lipavský, Albares plans to review the international situation, paying special attention to the Ukraine war and the emergence of the new US administration in the geopolitical context.
The conversation will address the relationship between the two countries, including the link between the two peoples (2,300 Spaniards live in the Czech Republic and more than 15,000 Czechs live in Spain), as well as commercial ties: Czechia is Spain's second largest partner in Central and Eastern Europe, and over 100 Spanish companies operate in the Czech Republic.
Minister Albares will make special mention of the promotion of the Spanish language, which plays a major role in advancing this union between the Spanish and Czech people. Its teaching is facilitated by Czech schools through the six bilingual Spanish sections in secondary education, and through the Cervantes Institute, which has a branch in Prague.
Culture will also be at the forefront of talks between Albares and Lipavský. The Spanish minister will participate in the presentation and attend the première in Prague of the 'Ashes’ documentary film, which tells the story of a group of Spaniards murdered in the Nazi concentration camp of Hradištk and buried in the Strašnice crematorium, on the outskirts of the city of Prague. Coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the closure of the Hradištk camp, Minister Albares will meet with the relatives of the Spanish victims.
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