Ambassador Philippe J. Lhuillier was joined by the Ayuntamiento de Madrid´s Mr. Cecilio Cerdán Carbonero, the Director General of Cooperation and Global Citizenship in a ribbon-cutting ceremony to unveil the commemorative marker celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations of the Philippines and Spain on Friday, 28 October 2022.
Standing witness with the Ambassador was Senator Bong Go; Ambassador of Malaysia, H.E. Akmal Che Mustafa; Ambassador of Viet Nam, H. E. Hoang Xuan Hai; Ambassador of Indonesia, H.E. Muhammad Najib, as well as Mr. Ricardo Jose Gomez Acebo of the Ministry of Exteral Affairs of Spain.
The Ambassador thanked the Ayuntamiento for its support in valuing the diplomatic relations of the Philippines and Spain, one of the countries with which the Philippines has the longest relationship.
Mr. Cerdán, who represented Madrid Mayor José Luis Martínez Almeida at the unveiling, said that the Jose Rizal monument, aptly placed in Avenida de las Islas Filipinas, “serves as [Madrid´s] recognition and homage [to the Philippines´national hero], and seals the eternal friendship and brotherhood between the peoples of the Philippines and Spain”.
Ambassador Lhuillier led the crowd in a toast to the health of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, and that of Their Majesties, King Felipe VI and Queen Leticia, and to the enduring relationship of the Philippines and Spain.
Joining the event were members of the Filipino Community, the Order of the Knights of Rizal, Spanish university professors, the diplomatic corps and media.