Pedro Sanchez visits Ukraine as Spain takes over EU presidency

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez started Spain’s six-month presidency of the European Union with a lightning visit to Kyiv on Saturday to underline the bloc’s support of Ukraine in the face of the invasion by Russia.

Sanchez arrived in the Ukrainian capital by train from Poland.

Sanchez wants the trip to be the Spanish presidency’s first act “to show with his presence the EU’s undivided support to Ukraine in all fields: military, humanitarian and economic”, his office said.

He said the war in Ukraine and its consequences would be a priority during the presidency.

Countries holding the presidency traditionally try to set the agenda within the bloc, though the results ultimately depend on all member states.

Spain has set its sights on concluding a long-delayed trade deal with South America’s Mercosur bloc, an EU-wide migration deal, as well as pushing for a common corporate tax rate and moving forward the EU banking union.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the visit Thursday in an address to European leaders gathered for a summit in Brussels. He highlighted the symbolism of the visit and the importance of the next six months for Europe. He added that it was the moment to begin negotiations for Ukraine’s entry into the EU.

Speaking Friday in Brussels, Sánchez said, “The war in Ukraine will be one of the great priorities of our presidency, with the focus being on guaranteeing the unity (on the issue) among all member states.”

This was Sánchez’s third time in Kyiv since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Sánchez will return to Madrid by Sunday, when he meets with the European Council President Charles Michel, a day before the arrival of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the college of EU commissioners.

The rotating presidency comes as Spain faces an early general election on July 23, which polls shows could oust Sánchez’s leftist coalition government and replace it with a conservative administration, or even a coalition with the extreme right, and follow a trend happening in much of Europe.

Sánchez has said that he wants to focus on rebuilding intra-European supply chains to avoid shortages and guarantee energy sovereignty. This would include establishing European dominance in the fields of artificial intelligence and digital security.

Spain also hopes the EU-Latin America summit set for July 17-18 in Brussels, the first in eight years, will represent “a qualitative leap” in relations between the two regions and will lead to a powerful investment agenda with Latin American and Caribbean nations.

Spain also wants to make EU progress on the green transition and electricity market reform. Spain has significant experience in the sector as it forges ahead with solar, wind power and green hydrogen installations at an unprecedented rate.