The meeting at the Presidential Palace took place around 11:00 am, after the Spanish monarchs laid a wreath at the memorial dedicated to António Agostinho Neto, the first President of Angola after independence in 1975.
The kings were received with military honors and 21 cannon salutes by President João Lourenço and the first lady, Ana Dias Lourenço, with whom they exchanged views on a historic visit, the first time that a Spanish king sets foot in Angola, reports the Spanish agency Efe.
The two heads of state then had a private meeting, in which they analyzed the bilateral relationship, while the first ladies met with women leaders of civil society in the African country to talk about education.
This is followed by an exchange of decorations, in the presence of the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, who is accompanying the kings on their first high-level visit to sub-Saharan Africa.
The Spanish monarch will hand over to the Angolan representative and his wife the Collar and Grand Cross of the Order of Civil Merit, respectively, receiving in turn the Grand Collar of the Order of Agostinho Neto.
After the official lunch, served at the Presidential Palace, the royal couple will attend, at the Banco Económico headquarters, a presentation by the International University of Cuanza, inaugurated in October 2021, in the city of Cuíto (Bié province, center), promoted by the Iberoamerican University Foundation (Funiber).
It is the first Iberian-speaking higher education centre, which aims to strengthen links between Portuguese and Spanish-speaking countries.
In the same place, the exhibition of the Catalan painter Joan Miró will be inaugurated, organized by Funiber with the title "O cântico do Sol e as maravilhas acrostáticas".
The visit of the King of Spain to Angola is the first by a European head of state after João Lourenço began his second and final mandate on the 15th of September.
In early March, it will be the turn of the French President, Emmanuel Mácron, to visit the country, which last month received visits from the heads of Chinese diplomacy, Qi Gang, and Russian diplomacy, Serguei Lavrov.
The Spanish Government wants to strengthen its relationship with Angola in view of the business opportunities for Spanish companies offered by the economic modernization plan of the Angolan executive, which includes the construction of roads, hospitals, solar and wind farms and the purchase of defense material.
