Pedro Sánchez and Volodímir Zelenski will not be able to ratify next Friday in Madrid the bilateral security agreement on which their two cabinets have been working. The president of Ukraine yesterday suspended his international agenda for the next few days as a result of the Russian offensive in Kharkiv, as confirmed last morning by the King’s House after various Portuguese media reported it. Zelensky, in fact, also planned to visit Belgium and Portugal on a brief tour.
It was the first official visit of the Ukrainian president to Spain, despite the fact that Zelensky already participated last October in the summit of the European Political Community that was held in Granada, during the Spanish presidency of the Council of the EU. The Government had not confirmed the visit, although Zarzuela had done so, noting that Felipe VI would receive Zelensky at the Royal Palace and that an official lunch would later be held in his honor, which Queen Letizia would also attend. .
On Tuesday of last week, Sánchez conveyed to his counterpart “Spain’s support for Ukraine for as long as necessary”, given the critical situation that Vladimir Putin’s Russian invasion continues to push after two years of war. “Until the end,” confirmed the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, yesterday.
Zelensky already has bilateral security agreements sealed with other European countries, such as Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Italy. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, highlighted that this new bilateral security agreement with Spain seeks to “give predictability to Ukraine” regarding the support it will receive in military and security matters, in the long term and in a sustained manner over time. as other European countries are already doing.
Waiting to learn about the completion of the agreement, Minister Robles warned yesterday that “the most important thing is the total and absolute commitment that Spain has with Ukraine, and that we will continue as long as necessary.” The Defense Minister reiterated that “there is no room for equidistances.” “There is only one person responsible here, which is Russia, and therefore we have to continue supporting Ukraine until the end. The situation at this moment is very difficult, and that is why more than ever we have to continue supporting them,” defended Robles.
Sánchez already confirmed to Zelensky, in their last telephone conversation, that he will participate in the peace conference for Ukraine that will be held next June in Switzerland. “We continue working for a just and lasting peace based on respect for international law,” defended the Spanish president.
