Spain attends the Ibero-American Summit with the aim of strengthening ties between the EU and Latin America under the European Presidency

Albares begins his agenda in Santo Domingo tomorrow with a dinner hosted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic, Roberto Álvarez, in which all the Ibero-American foreign ministers will take part as a prelude to the Meeting of Foreign Affairs Ministers, which begins on Friday, 24 March.

During the session, the minister will focus his speech on highlighting the relationship between the EU and Latin America and the Caribbean, while urging his counterparts to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the Spanish Presidency of the EU in the second half of 2023.

With regard to the activities taking place parallel to the summit, the minister will be present at the "Ibero-American Meeting of Young Leaders", which is being held under the slogan "for the consolidation of the New Agenda for Youth and Sustainability", and he will attend the 14th Ibero-American Business Meeting, where he plans to be present at the discussion of Heads of State and Government in which the king is taking part.

Once finished, and with the full Spanish delegation, headed by Felipe VI who is expected to be joined by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, Albares will also take part in the opening ceremony of the XXVII Ibero-American Summit, to be held on Saturday 25 March.

Addressing current challenges

Spain is looking forward to these working sessions, at which a series of documents will be adopted relating to pressing issues such as food security, environmental challenges and the guarantees needed to create digital societies, to which the Ibero-American community will respond via a series of documents.

By way of example, an initiative is planned to ensure the enjoyment of the right to food for all people at times of serious threat to food security caused by situations like the war in Ukraine. The document, entitled "The critical route to inclusive and sustainable food security in Ibero-America", will provide a response to one of the most immediate challenges facing the international context.

The search for actions to ensure sustainable development that respects nature will be embodied in the "Ibero-American Environmental Charter", which reflects a shared vision of the Ibero-American community vis-à-vis the global challenges posed by climate change. These challenges also include the need to guarantee fundamental rights and responsibilities in the construction of inclusive, fair, equitable and egalitarian digital societies, which will be embodied in the "Ibero-American Charter of Principles and Rights in Digital Environments".

The summit will also be a meeting space for dialogue between the Heads of State and Government of the 22 countries of the Ibero-American community. All representatives of the countries that form the community will also have the opportunity to meet face-to-face for the first time in five years because of the pandemic. And Spain, like the rest of its Ibero-American partners, will focus its efforts on attending to the needs of the Ibero-American community under the prism of the European Presidency that it assumes on 1 July 2023, and with the aim of producing tangible results for citizens.

Non official translation