Royal Central - Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
King Abdullah, Queen Rania and Prince Hashem travelled to Spain to attend the Aqaba Process meeting in Córdoba, and were welcomed by King Felipe and Queen Letizia.
King Abdullah and Queen Rania landed in Madrid on Monday, 19th June, and they immediately got on with their agendas, with the Queen of Jordan joining Queen Letizia in a visit to the Workshop Schools and Employment Workshops hosted by Patrimonio Nacional within the Royal Palace.
The two queens were offered a tour of three of the sectors: the workshop for woodwork, the one for artistic bookbinding, where they watched as students were learning how to rebuild covers for ancient manuscripts, and finally the employment workshops for tapestry and gardening, where they were restoring and maintaining carriages traditionally used at the Royal Palace.
Meanwhile, King Felipe and King Abdullah held a meeting in the Royal Palace, at which Prince Hashem was also present. The Hashemite King and Prince were welcomed by King Felipe as they exited their vehicle. Once inside the Palace, they posed for an official photograph before the meeting actually began.
The two monarchs introduced their respective delegations, before the private meeting took place. The Jordanian Court revealed that the two Heads of State discussed the potential role that Spain, through its EU Presidency, can play in jointly working with Jordan in creating a peace process for regional tensions.
The two of them also discussed communal work to tackle global challenges like climate change, food and energy security, and the reshaping and deepening of economic and humanitarian ties.
The five Royals then reunited for lunch, still inside the Royal Palace, during which King Felipe also remembered another important occasion that fell on that day; the 9th anniversary of his proclamation as King of Spain, for which King Abdullah then offered his congratulations when it came time for him to speak.
After a meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, both King Abdullah and King Felipe travelled to Córdoba to attend the inaugural dinner of the Aqaba conference, together with the other leaders participating: the President of Mauritania, the President of Guinea-Bissau, the President of Ghana, and the President of the African Union Commission.
On Wednesday, 20th June, both King Felipe and King Abdullah will take part in the Aqaba Process, an initiative launched by King Abdullah himself to promote “military and security cooperation”, as well as “coordination and exchange of experiences between regional and international partners in the fight against terrorism”.
The Hashemite King and Queen realised a similar visit to Spain 8 years ago. Working visits also serve the purpose of strengthening bilateral and diplomatic ties.