Spanish presidency

Dear Members of Parliament, Dear Colleagues,

As President of the Committee on Science, Innovation, and Universities of the Spanish Congress of Deputies, it is an honour to chair the Presidency of the European Interparliamentary Space Conference in 2026.

Let me remind you that Spain became a member of the European Interparliamentary Space Conference (EISC) in 2000. Since then, we have actively participated in the meetings organised by the various former presidencies of the Conference, and we have also had the honour of serving as its president twice, in 2004 and 2015. Now, it is our delegation’s honour to chair the Conference again and to continue the great work of former presidencies, ensuring the continuity and a successful future for the space Conference.

Thank you, Estonia, thank you, Mario Kadastik and Riigikogu, for your great job; we take the baton with enthusiasm.

Dear colleagues, save the date and join us for the Annual Workshop, from the 12th to the 14th of April in Seville, Spain. I also announce to you the dates for the Plenary Session, which will take place in Madrid from the 20th to the 22nd of September.

The focus during the Spanish Presidency is “Space as a common strategic asset”. Under this umbrella, and continuing the work of previous presidencies, fundamental topics would be addressed, such as the preservation of space for future generations, ensuring its sustainability, the regulation of space activity, the safety of critical structures, space services and applications, and the promotion of investment and cooperation among all stakeholders — a step towards asserting a leading European role on a global level, contributing to the generation of a culture of knowledge and social awareness, in other words, “spatialising society”.

Discussions would also cover the future of the Conference, national and European space legislation (and potential conflicts between them), the Register of Space Activities, and the role of parliamentarians in conveying the importance of space to society, as well as the “Dark and Quiet Skies” initiative, promoted by Spain and Chile to preserve areas of space for the study of stars.

There are many challenges we face and upcoming opportunities in the future.

We look forward to welcoming you all to Spain for the upcoming events. Let’s continue working for space.