Pro-independence parties won’t be invited to lunch with Obama on his visit to Spain

Barcelona (CNA).- Spain’s King will organise a lunch next Monday on the occasion of the US President, Barack Obama’s visit to Spain and none of the Catalan pro-independence parties in the Spanish Parliament will be invited. The Basque Nationalist Party (PNB) has also been excluded. According to the Royal Household, Obama was interested in meeting the leaders of the most important parties, that is to say, current Spanish President and leader of the Conservative People’s Party (PP), Mariano Rajoy, Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) leader, Pedro Sánchez, Pablo Iglesias, leader of alternative left coalition Unidos-Podemos and Albert Rivera, from Spanish Unionist ‘Ciutadans’. However, several acting ministers have already confirmed their attendance too. The lunch, which will be presided over by Philip VI, is set to be one of the central events in Obama’s agenda and was requested by the main four parties in the Spanish Parliament.

The Royal Household told the CNA that Obama’s visit is not protocolary, if that were the case, all the spokespersons of the parliamentary groups would have been invited. Moreover, the team of Philip VI also justified the decision by saying that the parliamentary groups haven’t yet been constituted in the Spanish Chamber, a process which will start on the 19^th of July. Finally, the Royal Household also stated that the North American authorities “were interested in the attendance of the leaders of the four parties with the most votes and MPs”.  

Obama’s agenda in Spain is set to start this Saturday. Spain’s King will receive the US President in Seville and on Sunday will go with him on a tour of the Andalusian capital. He will then travel to Madrid that night. On Monday, Obama will hold a meeting with current Spanish President, Mariano Rajoy and later will attend the lunch held by the Royal Household. There, he is set to address a speech to Rajoy, the three other main political leaders, Philip VI and his wife Leticia and the current ministers, who will also attend the lunch.  

Later, Obama will attend an event with young entrepreneurs in the Spanish capital.