Obama to spend three days in Spain in July

US President Barack Obama has announced that he will visit Spain on a three-day excursion in July, the White House has confirmed this week.

The official visit will be the President’s first to Spain since taking office at the beginning of 2009, and comes at the tail-end of Obama’s reign at the White House…

Following a trip to Poland to meet with NATO leaders, Obama’s Air Force One will touch down in Spain on July 9, beginning a three-day trip where – it is hoped – the President will meet with Spain’s newly installed Prime Minister.

Obama is in Europe this summer to hold bilateral talks with NATO members, including Spain, and a White House statement confirming the visit said: “The visit to Spain, an important NATO ally, will highlight robust security cooperation, a strong political and economic relationship, and longstanding people-to-people ties.”

The president will also meet with King Felipe during his visit, which is sure to draw crowds wherever the entourage goes. Following the announcement of the visit, the US Ambassador to Spain, James Costos, tweeted that Obama’s presence on Spanish soil should help “underscore the strength of [the two countries’] robust and multifaceted bilateral relationship”.

While Barack Obama has not been to Spain since becoming president, his wife Michelle and daughter Sasha did visit Spain in August 2010, taking in a tour of Marbella in the process. Whether the President makes it down to the Costa del Sol remains to be seen, but he can be assured of a warm welcome if he does venture south…