Pablo R. SuanzesBrussels Correspondent

Brussels Correspondent

Updated Tuesday, January 30, 2024-21:14

"Madrid is the candidate to beat. We have assets in all the critical indicators, both for the city and for connectivity, transportation, communication, cybersecurity and of course, the domestic framework for the fight against money laundering, that we are pioneers. That is a strong and complete candidacy." This is the message conveyed this Tuesday by Mayor

José Luis Martínez-Almeida

, who traveled to Brussels together with the Minister of Economy,

Carlos Body

, and the Minister of Economy of the Community,

Rocío Albert López-Ibor

, on the occasion of the defense of Madrid's candidacy as the headquarters of the AMLA, the new European Authority for the fight against money laundering.

Spain presented its proposal last November and today the European Parliament has organized a marathon day to evaluate all the candidates:

Brussels

,

Vienna

,

Frankfurt

,

Paris

,

Dublin

,

Rome

,

Riga

and

Vilnius

, in addition to Madrid. The decision will be made on February 22 and right now it is not at all clear what is going to happen. First, because all the great powers, Spain, France, Italy and Germany, have aspirations, and that makes the search for support and diplomatic balance very complicated. And second, because the format for deciding which city will take over the authority is new, a codecision process between the European Parliament and the Council, that is, the national governments. Usually it is only the ministers who decide, but now the 10 will have to use their political capital to seduce Executives and political families.

"The candidacy is serious, solid and solvent. In the last 18 months, the three administrations, together with civil society, have done our work to present the best candidacy. We are awaiting the decision, but we have shown that Madrid would be the best headquarters for the authority. Without close collaboration it would not have been possible," stated the mayor. "The candidacy has been very well received by deputies, Council and Commission. It has been half an hour, with very specific and technical questions. The level of detail shows the interest and we have received very good

feedback

when leaving. The comments are positive and we remain excited ", agreed Minister Corps.

Throughout the day, the MEPs and officials of the institutions have listened to the 10 delegations and have asked all kinds of questions, some with more doubts and others, as in the case of the Spanish or

Rome

, focused on elements such as the possibility that the initially planned venues may change or expand. Madrid would assume the costs of renting the offices and bear the expenses for a few years.

"It is not just any agency, it is one of the important ones, relevant to the fight against the financing of terrorism. That is why it is not surprising that there are so many cities with interest. As Parliament, the most important thing for us is the regulatory framework, which will a city, a country, with a solid framework against money laundering. On the 22nd, at night or early in the morning I fear, the final decision will be known with the vote of the speakers and ambassadors of the 27 to the EU. There may be rounds because it is a decision by a simple majority, so the process can take a little longer," Spanish Ciudadanos MEP

Eva Poptcheva

, speaker, explained after concluding the auditions. "All candidates have options, there are arguments for and against all of them. We have some favorites and others that are being discarded. Madrid has a very good candidacy," she concluded without giving additional clues.