In parallel to the bilateral meeting between the two heads of government, sector meetings at a ministerial and State secretariat level will also be held, between the Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation; for Justice; for Home Affairs; for Public Works; for Education, Culture and Sport; for Energy, Tourism and Digital Agenda (the Director of the Office for Climate Change will take part in this meeting) and the Ministers for the Economy. Following these meetings, a lunch will be given for all of the members of the two national delegations, and the summit will be brought to a close with a joint press conference by the two heads of government.
Aside from bilateral issues, Europe will also play a key role at the Malaga Summit, as corresponds to two of the countries with the greatest weighting in the European Union and in the Eurozone. As regards the upcoming celebration, to be held in Rome, of the 60th anniversary of the signing of the treaties that constituted the European Economic Community, the President of the Government and President Hollande will speak about the European project, its undisputed achievements, the main challenges it faces at present and its future projection.
Over these 60 years, the European Union has become an economic block of the first order, with almost 25% of global GDP, and high levels of well-being. With only 7% of the global population, the European Union provides 50% of all social spending in the world. Moreover, it is an open and dynamic trading block, and the leading trading power in the world in terms of total imports and exports. Europe has overcome an unprecedented crisis, but certain major challenges still persist at an economic level, such as bedding down the economic recovery, extending the Economic and Monetary Union and making further progress on the common market. The President of the Government and President Hollande will address these issues, as well as the reforms to be pushed through to respond to the concerns of our citizens and to ensure that the European Union and the Euro continue to be a source of prosperity for all our citizens.
Economic relations between Spain and France
France is Spain's leading trading partner: it is the leading destination for our exports (15.5% of total exports in 2015) and the second-highest supplier (10.8% of all our imports). Investor relations between the two countries are also intense. France is the fourth-largest investor in Spain, with a portfolio of investments in 2014 amounting to 37.02 billion euros (11.2% of total foreign investment). Furthermore, France is the second-largest emitting market of tourists (behind only the United Kingdom). In 2015, 11.5 million French tourists visited Spain (an 8.9% rise on the previous year), thus constituting the favourite foreign destination for French tourists.
Pool Moncloa/Archivo