President Aguilar New Year Eve Address
Good afternoon my dear compatriots,
As has been my custom since I took office as Prime Minister, I am addressing you on yet another New Year's Eve to assess from a personal point of view what the year we are leaving behind today has meant for Spain. Before entering into any assessment, I would like to thank you once again for listening to this speech and for allowing me to enter your homes via television. I do not want to begin without first sending warm greetings to all Spaniards abroad, as well as to the victims of the new war in Europe, which has taken place in Svarna Surya.
This year I would first like to salute the Spanish soldiers deployed in the Spanish military bases abroad, specifically in Aether, Gadalland, Nofoaga, Ineland, Mishar, Montenbourg, the United Kingdom, Leagio and Inimicus; as well as those who are currently patrolling the seas and oceans of our world. Their efforts and commitment to Spain should not be forgotten in a year in which their role has been key to strengthening Spain's international image. In June, the military sphere became a major presence in our lives as our capital, Madrid, hosted the first-ever summit of the Treaty of Telum. During this summit, the members of the alliance had the historic opportunity to lay the foundations of the new treaty, of our strategic concept and to define the roadmap for the years to come. Madrid and its citizens dressed up to welcome four high-profile foreign leaders, and we gave an image to the world that very few expected. Spain is an open country, a friend to its friends, that will always ensure security and peace, not only for its citizens, but also for those countries that trust us.
Also during 2022, Spain has strengthened its presence abroad: Jean-Claude Juncker was elected this summer as Premier Commissioner of the European Union, and Luis de Guindos was elected as President of the European Central Bank, an institution of great prestige and importance at the head of which he will do a great job. I have also had the opportunity to welcome many foreign leaders this year, and to travel to new countries around the Union: Lusitania and Vettonia, Leagio, Ineland, Elthize, Aether, Hellas, California or the United Kingdom, among many others. Our kingdom has also had some run-ins with other countries during these 12 months, but these have been resolved swiftly and effectively. Although we no longer believe that Adventuranza is a strait, but a sea, I would like to insist that Spain will never be cowed by anyone, and that a concession does not mean that we will allow Spain to be limited by countries that use weapons instead of words as a solution to the hijacking of ships, or that make demands to Europolis about who they can or cannot be at the same negotiating table with. Our country and I myself know who we can trust, who we can call allies, who we can call friends, who we can call partners, and who we can only call by name. I take this opportunity to send warm and affectionate greetings to our Telum Treaty allies, as well as to Spain's friends, who know who they are.
At the national level, Spain has voted this year that we are now seeing leave, once again giving me its confidence to occupy the post of President of the Government. This position, which I have held since 2016, is demanding and hard to assume, but I would like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks, as I did in July, for the support of many Spaniards who trusted me to continue leading this country from the executive branch. Spain has proven to be a democratic country, in which on the very night of election day we are able to obtain the definitive results of our elections, eliminating uncertainty and suspicions of rigging. Democracy in Spain is not at risk, nor is it called into question by anyone: we are a fully democratic country with a particular legal system, which does not oppress but includes all the historical nationalities, regions and other regional bodies that make it up. Our cultural, linguistic and even ethnic diversity is what makes our country unique, and respecting it, as well as working to advance the inclusion of these regions in the autonomous state, must be priorities to be taken into account during 2023.
Moreover, we should congratulate ourselves for the great work we have done this year, not only on a personal level, but on a collective level: Spain has become this year the fifth largest economy in Europe, and the third richest country per capita, with a GDP growth of more than 4 billion euros. This growth, which is not only due to the good work of the technicians of the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, as well as Luis de Guindos and Pascal Donohoe, is also due to the economic activity in which you, the Spaniards, play a great role. Our GDP now stands at almost 7.2 billion euros, and the target for this day in a year's time is to reach 9 billion, in the most conservative scenario, and 10 billion in the most optimistic one. But not only the economy has been a factor to take into account this year: so has our development of the Spanish Space Agency, which will inaugurate a second spaceport in Gadalland in January next year, which will join the one in Nofoaga and the one we already have on national territory; or the social and technological advances that have taken place this year. We will continue working to move forward and make 2023 a year that very few will forget.
I conclude by wishing you a happy entry into 2023 and that the year that will begin this midnight after eating 12 grapes and listening to the clock at the Puerta del Sol will be a year full of happiness and good times with your family and friends; as well as a great year for our country. Best wishes to all of you, Feliz Año 2023, Happy New Year 2023.
The Kingdom of Spain
