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Spain

King Felipe and Queen Letizia host lunch for the President of Angola at the Royal Palace

King Felipe and Queen Letizia’s diplomatic agenda for the week continued; after their meeting with the Portuguese President on Monday, they welcomed the President and First Lady of Angola at the Royal Palace on Tuesday. 

The Angolan Presidential couple is in Spain for an official two-day visit. The trip comes shortly after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez travelled to Angola in April. 

Prior to lunch, King Felipe and President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço held an official bilateral meeting at Zarzuela Palace in the presence of a small delegation. On the Spanish side, the delegation consisted of Spain’s Ambassador to Angola, Manuel Hernández Ruigómez, and the sub secretary of Foreign Affairs, Luis Manuel Cuesta Civis. Joining discussions on the Angolan side was the Minister of Foreign Relations, Téte António, and the Angolan Ambassador to Spain, Luis de Matos Agostinho. 

Following the bilateral meeting, King Felipe and President Gonçalves Lourenço travelled to the Royal Palace, where they were joined by their respective wives and posed for a photo op before sitting down for lunch. Queen Letizia, dressed in a colour that resembles the blooms of Angola’s national flower (which is the Welwitschia), was accompanied by Angola’s First Lady Ana Afonso Dias Lourenço, who served as the Minister of Economics and Planning from 1999 to 2012 under previous President José Eduardo dos Santos.

Before food was served, both the King and the President said a few words, with His Majesty praising Angola for their push towards a more diversified economic plan, and their willingness to accept help from the international community, especially through the project ‘Focus Africa 2023’, before concluding his speech with the traditional toast to the two countries’ friendship and good relations. 

This visit represented the first official trip from an Angolan President to Spain in 25 years and comes as Angola and Spain prepare to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. 

President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço took power in September of 2017 from the hands of former President José Eduardo dos Santos, who presided over the country for 38 years since Angola gained independence from Portugal in 1975.

It is the duty of His Majesty to promote both diplomatic and economic ties that the country has with other nations around the world, and King Felipe has hosted many of such encounters since becoming King in 2014, often with the support of Queen Letizia.