First ladies in the 21st century

The NATO summit in Madrid has left a powerful image, difficult to beat in the family photo albums of this type of event.

No one remembers the usual flat, bland backgrounds of previous appointments, but the stamp of the leaders will remain next to

by Velázquez inside the Prado Museum, converted, for a few hours, into the Alliance's headquarters.

Family photo of the Heads of State and Government who have participated in the NATO summit in Madrid.A.

Ortega.

Pool (Europa Press)

The summit —the President of the Government and the leader of the opposition have said so— has been an organizational success, but it has not achieved all its objectives, such as “projecting an image of modernity”, in the words of Pedro Sánchez.

Because there is something in the images of the parallel and public agenda of the companions of the NATO leaders that squeaks.

In black and white, and with the famous voice of NO-DO narrating his visit to the tapestry room of the Royal Palace of La Granja, it would sound like another time.

It screeches because unlike in that dark era, now those leaders who meet to agree on strategies against the common enemy are chosen, their partners are not.

And it squeaks because when both agendas are combined, whether it is a NATO or G-7 summit, what is seen is: on the one hand, a group of leaders, with an overwhelming presence of men,

talking about the war, and, on the other, to a mostly female group doing tourism.

It is an unfair contrast, but it is also what is projected.

Queen Letizia, the French first lady, Brigitte Macron, and the wife of the NATO Secretary General, Ingrid Schulerud, talk with a worker in the dressing room of the Royal Theater in Madrid during the cultural visits to the companions of the leaders who attend the NATO summit. Ballesteros (EFE)

Queen Letizia and the companions of the leaders attending the NATO summit have visited the sewing workshops of the Royal Theater and have attended a rehearsal of the opera 'Nabucco', by Giuseppe Verdi.Ballesteros (EFE)

Queen Letizia is received, upon her arrival at the Teatro Real in Madrid, by the jurist and diplomat Gregorio Marañón y Bertrán de Lis, president of the Teatro Real, and by its director, Ignacio García-Belenguer Laita, on June 30, 2022, in Madrid.

Felipe VI's wife wore a fuchsia dress by Carolina Herrera that she had already worn in an act in Almagro in 2019. Alberto Ortega (Europa Press)

The companions of the leaders attending the NATO summit, guided by the Queen, have also attended a small private concert by Granada singer Kiki Morente during his visit to the Royal Theater in Madrid.Ballesteros (EFE)

On the last day of the NATO summit, Queen Letizia and the wife of the President of the Government, Begoña Gómez, went to the Royal Theater in Madrid with the leaders' companions and posed for a family photo on the same stage.

As at the dinner held the night before at the Prado Museum, this time Jill Biden, the first lady of the United States, has not attended the event. Ballesteros (EFE)

The French First Lady, Brigitte Macron, the wife of the President of the Government, Begoña Gómez, and Queen Letizia greeted the seamstresses and costume designers of the Royal Theater in Madrid this Thursday, during the cultural visits to the companions of the leaders who attend the NATO summit.

Crossbowmen (EFE)

Queen Letizia has invited the companions of the leaders of the NATO summit (among them the French first lady, Brigitte Macron, and the wife of the NATO secretary general, Ingrid Schulerud) to a healthy breakfast at the Royal Theater of Madrid, where they have carried out an olive oil tasting.Ballesteros (EFE)

Queen Letizia has been with the group of companions of the leaders of the NATO summit in their guided visit to the Royal Theater of Madrid.Ballesteros (EFE)

The director and the president of the Teatro Real receive Begoña Gómez, director of the extraordinary chair of Competitive Social Transformation at the Complutense University of Madrid and wife of the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, who, together with Queen Letizia, guides the companions of the Heads of State and Government who attend this Thursday the last day of the NATO summit in Madrid.

Alberto Ortega (Europe Press)

The wife of the President of France, Brigitte Macron, greets her arrival at the Teatro Real, on the last day of the NATO summit in the Spanish capital. Alberto Ortega (Europa Press)

Queen Letizia and the wife of the President of the Government, Begoña Gómez, pose with the rest of the companions of the leaders who attend the NATO summit together with Picasso's 'Guernica', during their visit to the Reina Sofía National Art Museum .HOUSE OF HM THE KING/JOSE JIMENEZ (via REUTERS)

Brigitte Macron, the wife of the French president, Emmanuel Macron, has been present at the visit to the Reina Sofía museum in Madrid, despite the fact that in the morning she has missed the walk through La Granja de San Ildefonso. OSCAR DEL POZO (AFP )

In the first row, the Norwegian diplomat Ingrid Schulerud, wife of the Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg;

Queen Letizia;

Pedro Sánchez's wife, Begoña Gómez;

and the first lady of the United States, Jill Biden.

Behind them, the first lady of Montenegro, Lidija Kuc Djukanovic;

Gauthier Destenay, husband of the Prime Minister of Luxembourg;

Diana Nausėdienė;

first lady of Lithuania;

and Lydia Bela, wife of the Prime Minister of Malta. OSCAR DEL POZO (AFP)

Queen Letizia receives the American first lady, Jill Biden, upon her arrival at the cultural events of the companions of the leaders who attend the NATO summit, in the Segovian town of La Granja de San Ildefonso.Ballesteros (EFE)

The Queen goes out to meet the American first lady, Jill Biden, at La Granja de San Ildefonso, this Wednesday.

Doña Letizia has worn esparto wedges for the occasion and has opted for Spanish fashion, wearing a polka dot dress by the Murcian designer Laura Bernal and a bag by a newborn Spanish brand, Hedēn.

Crossbowmen (EFE)

With the fountains of La Granja de San Ildefonso in the background, Queen Letizia posed with some of the companions of the leaders attending the NATO summit in Madrid.

Jill Biden has gone with her two granddaughters (on the left of the image) and Brigitte Macron has not attended the appointment. Ballesteros (EFE)

From left to right, the wife of the President of the Government, Begoña Gómez;

Queen Letizia;

the American first lady, Jill Biden;

and the South Korean first lady, Keon Hee Kim, at La Granja de San Ildefonso.

Crossbowmen (EFE)

Queen Letizia, along with the wife of the President of the Government, Begoña Gómez, and the US first lady, Jill Biden, among others, visit an exhibition of tapestries in La Granja during the cultural events for the companions of the leaders who attend the NATO summit. Ballesteros (EFE)

After visiting the Royal Tapestry Factory, the Queen and her companions went to the Glass Factory in La Granja de San Ildefonso.Ballesteros (EFE)

Queen Letizia and her companions visit the Royal Glass Factory, in La Granja (Segovia), where they have attended an exhibition of blown glass and an exhibition of works from the collection from NATO member countries.TWITTER/CASA DE SM THE KING

From left to right, the first lady of Malta, Lydia Bela;

the wife of the President of the Government, Begoña Gómez;

the wife of the NATO Secretary General, Ingrid Schulerud;

Queen Letizia;

and the Turkish first lady, Emine Erdogan, walk through the gardens of La Granja, during the cultural events for the companions of the leaders who attend the NATO summit. Ballesteros (EFE)

Queen Letizia waits for Jill Biden at the gates of the Center for Attention, Reception and Referral for Ukrainian Refugees in Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, last Tuesday. Jaime Villanueva

Doña Letizia and Jill Biden have been photographed with workers and refugees from the center of Pozuelo de Alarcón.

They have also held a talk with the heads of some of the NGOs that assist refugees, including Acnur, Red Cross or Unicef. MARISCAL (EFE)

In the courtyard of the Ukrainian refugee center in Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid), Queen Letizia and the first lady of the United States, Jill Biden, met this Tuesday with the temporarily housed families and visited the World Central Kitchen caravan of the Chef José Andrés, in charge of providing food to Ukrainian refugees. Twitter / Casa de SM el Rey

The Queen and Jill Biden chat upon arrival at the Ukrainian refugee center in Madrid.

While the American first lady wore an Oscar de la Renta design, Doña Letizia wore a white pantsuit by Carolina Herrera. Jaime Villanueva

Skipping protocol, on Tuesday Biden greeted Doña Letizia by grabbing her hands and giving her two kisses.

MARSHAL (EFE)

Together with the American first lady, her granddaughters, Finnegan Biden (who affectionately greets the Queen) and Maisy Biden, have gone to the refugee center in Pozuelo de Alarcón.

Doña Letizia was already at Easter in this same center, where she went with King Felipe and his two daughters. OSCAR DEL POZO (AFP)

After their first meeting on Monday, this Tuesday morning the Queen and Jill Biden met again in Madrid, this time in Pozuelo de Alarcón.

Some 22,000 people have passed through this Ukrainian refugee center of the 124,000 to whom Spain has granted temporary protection. OSCAR DEL POZO (AP)

The wife of US President Joe Biden visited several stores in the Salamanca district of the capital with her granddaughters.

He bought, among other things, some espadrilles from the Spanish firm Castañer. After the afternoon of shopping, Biden and his granddaughters went to a party at the US embassy in Spain, located on Calle Serrano in Madrid, where a cocktail was held and a party in which Luz Casal, Ketama, Pablo López or cantaor Israel Fernández played and sang.

In addition, among the guests were Alejandro Sanz and his girlfriend, Rachel Valdés, Rozalén, Carlos Vives and Ainhoa ​​Arteta. José Ramón Hernando (Europa Press)

In addition to her official agenda, on Monday Jill Biden was also in some establishments in the center of the Spanish capital where there were already sales.

The first lady was surrounded by great security measures. José Ramón Hernando (Europa Press)

In the week in which the NATO summit is held in Madrid, the first lady of the United States, Jill Biden, was one of the first guests to arrive (she did so on Sunday).

Queen Letizia received her at the La Zarzuela palace on Monday morning. Royal House / José Jiménez (Royal House / EFE)

After receiving Jill Biden, Queen Letizia held a meeting with the First Lady of the United States at the La Zarzuela Palace in Madrid. Casa Real/José Jiménez (Casa Real/EFE)

After passing through La Zarzuela, the Queen and the First Lady of the United States visited the headquarters of the Spanish Association Against Cancer to learn about its projects.

"She is charming and intelligent," said Doña Letizia of her guest during the visit to the AECC.EFE

In 2019, at the G-7 summit in Biarritz, France, the image of the wives of some leaders standing in high heels in the field and posing smiling with baskets overflowing with peppers provoked ridicule.

It did not help that the then President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, released a video with the message: “Melania, Brigitte, Malgosia and Akie.

The light side of the Force”, referring, by their first names, to the wives of Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron, Shinzo Abe and his, who looked at the sea, from behind, in one of the scheduled entertainment acts.

At the 2017 NATO summit in Belgium, the leaders' companions visited the Magritte Museum, the Royal Palace and a luxury accessories store while their partners talked about the fight against jihadism.

In that same quote,

The White House omitted the name of Gauthier Destenay, husband of the Prime Minister of Luxembourg, in the official photo of the spouses of the leaders of the Atlantic Alliance.

Ten hours later, after a barrage of criticism, he rectified.

Gauthier Destenay, in the second row, surrounded by the first ladies at the NATO summit in Brussels, in 2017.SASCHA STEINBACH (EFE)

It is not a Spanish problem.

Here, the so-called first ladies usually have a low profile and several have kept their jobs, which has avoided the problems that this figure has generated, for example, in the neighboring country, where Macron even promoted the officialization of their functions with own statute and budget.

But Spain, as the host country, has been the scene of this latest display of anachronism.

They talk about the war, while they go sightseeing and the media comment on their dresses and the shoes they have bought.

Does the concept of "first lady" make sense, in the XXI century, when, logically, there are already several "first gentlemen"?

Do the partners of the presidents or presidents have to accompany them and maintain a parallel and public agenda as

Did anyone miss Angela Merkel's husband, who watched his wife's inauguration on television, at the successive high-level summits and meetings?

What's more, does anyone remember how he was dressed on the few dates he did attend?

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