The Zarzuela is considering an option that, if it materializes, could become one of the most symbolic gestures of the year.
The King’s House is considering that Queen Sofia be the one to receive Princess Leonor in New York when she finishes her voyage aboard the training ship Juan Sebastian de Elcano.
Queen Sofia and Princess Leonor in New York
The idea goes beyond protocol. It would be a scene with a lot of emotional weight, which would foreground the bond between grandmother and granddaughter, and would reinforce the image of continuity in the monarchy.
Leonor will finish her naval training with the Navy in June, an intense experience that has taken her around the world with her fellow cadets. Her disembarkation in the United States will bring this stage to a close.
Although there is a possibility that the King and Queen will travel there for the reunion, the Royal House is seriously considering giving that moment to the Queen Emeritus.
Those who know the ins and outs of the Palace assure that the gesture would serve to value the figure of Queen Sofia as a generational link within the royal family.
The queen emeritus has been present, almost always in the background, accompanying and supporting the heiress at key moments of her institutional journey.
In addition to the family message, there is a political and diplomatic reading.
Although it is not an official visit, Leonor’s trip to New York will not go unnoticed. For weeks there has been talk of the possibility that she will coincide with Donald Trump during her stay, which would open a door for the kings to be invited to a state visit to the White House in the near future.
The last time that happened was in 2015, with Barack Obama in the Oval Office. Then came the pandemic and what was planned for 2020 was left up in the air.
Nothing is confirmed yet, and in Zarzuela they remain silent on the details. But what is certain is that every movement around Leonor is thought out to the millimeter.