There are not many opportunities to see the former presidents of the Government Felipe González, José MarÃa Aznar, José Luis RodrÃguez Zapatero and Mariano Rajoy together, but this Monday has been one of those days, with the additional information that it takes place in the middle of the pre-campaign of the general elections on July 23.
The four former presidents have attended the annual meeting of the board of trustees of the Elcano Royal Institute, which the King has chaired, in the El Pardo palace, and at the beginning of the meeting they could be seen having some conversations. The socialists González -who has attended the meeting with a cane- and Zapatero have placed themselves to the right of Felipe VI, both in the family photo and in the meeting, and have chatted among themselves, and so have the popular Aznar and Rajoy. The latter, to the left of the King, have been chatting with former Defense Minister MarÃa Dolores de Cospedal, vice president of Elcano.
The meeting was also attended by the Foreign Ministers, José Manuel Albares; Defense, Margarita Robles, and Culture, Miquel Iceta. All of them are natural members of the board of trustees, such as the former presidents of the Government, and the ministers of Economy and Education. So are the presidents of the large companies that contribute to the financing of Elcano, and there is a patron proposed by the main opposition party.
The Elcano Institute is a forum for analysis and discussion on international news and in particular on Spain’s international relations. The meeting on Monday, which the King presided over in his capacity as honorary president, began with interventions by the president of Elcano, José Juan Ruiz, and its director, Charles Powell, who presented their reports. The annual accounts corresponding to the 2022 financial year have also been examined and approved, which reflect a surplus of 337,000 euros, and the activities report has been approved, as well as the report “Why does Latin America matter?”
Once the meeting ended, the King has spoken with the participants and attendees. Among them, the Governor of the Bank of Spain, Pablo Hernández de Cos, and the Secretary of State for Foreign and Global Affairs, Ãngeles Moreno Bau. Also the presidents of Banco de Santander, Ana BotÃn; Caixabank, José Ignacio Goirigolzarri; Repsol, Antonio Brufau, and Iberdrola, Ignacio Sánchez Galán, in addition to the CEOs of Inditex, Óscar GarcÃa, and Endesa, José Bogas.
