Spanish King and Queen Visit A Coruña

The King and Queen of Spain had a day of engagements in A Coruña today, attending the closing of a general assembly, presenting medals and opening an exhibition.

Joined by the President of Portugal, Aníbal Cavaco Silva, and his wife Maria, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia were first at the Rosalia de Castro Theatre for the closing of the 23rd Eixo Atlântico do Noroeste Peninsular General Assembly. Since 1992, the association has brought together municipalities in the regions of Galicia and Northern Portugal to help identify and find solutions to “economic, social, technical and cultural issues” that affect the citizens of the areas.

King Felipe delivered a speech – in Castilian, Galician and Portuguese – during the assembly, discussing job creation, developments and the continuation of the Spanish-Portuguese relationship: “Cross-border cooperation is a very valuable tool, because the relationship between our countries clearly is not only from governments and institutions.”

“It comes, particularly, from our citizens and the work and the relationship between the border populations. Only together do we have the strength we need in a globalised world to jointly and effectively defend our identity, and for a future peace and prosperity for our people,” the King said.

The association’s Gold Medals were presented to three individuals – José Palma, Carlos Beltrán and José Soeiro – to recognise their efforts in integration and development of the region with greater Europe.

After lunch at a local restaurant, King Felipe and Queen Letizia went on to the A Coruña Museum of Fine Arts, where they opened an exhibition of Pablo Picasso’s works. Entitled “The First Picasso”, the exhibition features a number of the painter’s most known works, which have been lent from museums around Spain and the globe. The exhibition is being held to commemorate the 120th anniversary of Picasso’s first exhibition, which was also held in the region.

Queen Letizia paid a subtle homage to the famed painted with her attire, wearing a long-sleeved white and black stripped top paired with a black A-line skirt and burgundy heels.

Filed under Spain
Tagged Awards, Bilateral Relations, Exhibition, Felipe VI of Spain, Portugal, President Cavaco Silva of Portugal, Queen Letizia of Spain.