Spain has received more than 200 thousand Ukrainians since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said.
“Spain has more than 200 thousand refugees who came from Ukraine, although we are at a great distance,” he said at the NATO Public Forum in Washington, where the NATO summit is taking place.
According to the prime minister, most Spaniards support the government’s efforts in Ukraine “because we understand what is at stake.”
“It is not only the defense of the territorial integrity, freedom, and the right to existence of a nation, but also respect for a world ruled by clear principles,” he said.
The Spanish government on Tuesday called for the recognition of the state of Palestine within the 1967 borders, according to the Spanish TV channel RTVE.
“Spain will join more than 140 countries that have already recognized Palestine as a state. This is a historic decision whose sole purpose is to contribute to peace between Israelis and Palestinians,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said at a press conference following the government meeting. The press conference was broadcast by the Spanish TV channel RTVE.
He noted that “it is not directed against anyone, especially Israel”. According to Sanchez, Madrid recognizes Palestine within the 1967 borders. He specified that he hopes for the creation of a Palestine that includes the West Bank and Gaza Strip with its capital in East Jerusalem, governed by the Palestinian National Authority.
Spain recognized Palestine, along with Ireland and Norway, which sparked a serious political crisis in relations with Israel.
After it became known about the decision of these three countries to recognize the independence of the Palestinian state, the Israeli Foreign Ministry announced the recall of ambassadors to Spain, Ireland and Norway for consultations and threatened these countries with “serious consequences.” The ambassadors of these countries were summoned to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
Spain will provide Ukraine with €1 billion in military aid in 2024 and another €5 billion within 3 years
As part of a bilateral security agreement, Spain will provide Ukraine with €1 billion in military aid in 2024 and €5 billion over three years, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.
“…Under the agreement, Spain will provide Ukraine with €1 billion in military aid already this year and €5 billion over three years. The countries have also agreed to provide assistance in economic recovery, support Ukrainian reforms on the way to membership in the EU and NATO and the Formula for Peace, as well as strengthening sanctions against Russia,” the ministry said in a statement published in its Telegram channel on Monday.
As reported, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez signed in Madrid a bilateral agreement on cooperation in the field of security.
Nova Poshta has opened its first Nova Post office in Spain – in Barcelona – and plans to expand its network to Valencia, Alicante, Murcia, Malaga, Estepona and Madrid in the near future, the group’s press service said on Tuesday.
“The opening of the first branch in Spain is just the beginning. We strive to be as close to our customers as possible, so in the near future we will open another branch in Barcelona, and during the year we will actively develop a network of parcel delivery service points together with our partners,” the release quotes Nova Post CEO in Spain Alexander Pavlovsky as saying.
According to the company’s press release, Nova Post’s Barcelona branch, which operates daily, allows customers to receive and send documents, parcels and cargo up to 100 kg to Ukraine. The declared delivery time is 8 days or more.
The cost of delivery from Ukraine to Spain is: UAH 1 thousand for documents, as well as UAH 1.05 thousand, UAH 1.7 thousand, and UAH 3 thousand for parcels up to 2 kg, 10 kg, and 30 kg, respectively. When sending a parcel from 30 to 100 kg, UAH 120 is paid for each kilogram.
It is noted that in May, Nova Poshta will launch targeted services in Spain, which will allow sending and delivering cargo up to 1 thousand kg to any address in the country. Delivery by courier will cost an additional UAH 100 for shipments up to 30 kg or UAH 120 for every 100 kg.
It is specified that Nova Poshta currently has more than 35 thousand points of service for sending and receiving parcels in Europe, of which 90 are Nova Post’s own branches in 11 countries: Estonia, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Czech Republic, Romania, Germany, Slovakia, Italy, Hungary and Moldova.
The Spanish government intends to cancel the program that provides foreigners with “golden visas” in exchange for real estate investments, the Financial Times reports, citing a statement by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Currently, citizens of non-EU countries can obtain a Spanish residence permit for a period of three years by investing at least EUR 500 thousand in real estate in the country.
The abolition of the program will improve the situation with the availability of housing in Spain, Sanchez said.
“Currently, 94 out of 100 of these visas are issued for real estate investments in large cities that are already facing a very difficult market. Those who already live there, work and pay taxes, can hardly find decent housing,” the prime minister said.
The volume of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the economy of mainland China in January-February 2024 decreased by 19.9% compared to the same period last year and amounted to 215.1 billion yuan ($30 billion), according to the Ministry of Commerce.
In particular, the inflow of foreign investment in the high-tech sector increased by 10.1% to 28.27 billion yuan.
At the same time, France’s foreign direct investment in China in January-February increased by 6.9 times in annual terms, Spain’s – by 5 times, Germany’s – by 2.4 times.
Over two months, 7.16 thousand new enterprises with foreign capital were registered in the country, which is 34.9% more than in January-February 2023, Xinhua reports.
“The 34.9% growth is the highest in the last five years. This indicates that multinationals are still optimistic about the development opportunities of the Chinese market,” a ministry spokesperson told the agency. – “Despite the decline in the volume of actually utilized FDI in the first two months, this is the third highest figure in the last ten years.
“At present, the favorable factors for attracting foreign investment in China outweigh the unfavorable ones, and the investment prospects are still bright,” the ministry representative added.
As reported, the volume of FDI in 2023 decreased by 8% and amounted to 1.13 trillion yuan.
