Ezagutu Lehendakaritza

Address:
820 2nd Avenue
DIPLOMAT BUILDING, Suite 13B
New York, 10017 (USA)

E-mail: usa@ej-gv.es

The Basque Government has strengthened its international presence by the opening of a new Delegation located in New York City (decree 30/2007 of February 20th). The goal is to give Euskadi a worldwide projection to achieve a higher profile in the institutional, economic, social and cultural arena.

There is a historical relationship of Euskadi with the United States, dating back to when Lehendakari Aguirre’s government in exile. This country is, without a doubt, the world’s main political and economic power and it is the example in a wide spectrum of activities.

Even though the Basque Country, due to its size, could have a limited influence in a country such as the United States, the Basque Government would like to intensify the institutional and political relations with the United States through the Delegation in NY. At the same time, the Delegation would like to become the point of entry for different sectors in the Basque Country, with a wide range of interests in the US, not only for general knowledge but also for market information.

There are important relationships between the United States and Euskadi, through SPRI’s office in Chicago, the Euskarri Basque Business Platform in Philadelphia and with the Basque Diaspora through NABO and the Basque clubs. We should mention that the United States is a reference for many of the Basque Government’s Departments with a wide margin of collaboration in areas such as science and technology, security, forestry, water management or culture.

In that sense, the existence of the Guggenheim Bilbao Museum and its relationship with New York’s Guggenheim Museum opens a lot of possibilities of building relationships in many areas beyond the strictly cultural or artistic which will be studied in the future.

The Delegation of Euskadi in the Unites States, located in New York City, a few blocks away from the United Nations, is the strategic location from where relationships with multilateral institutions and three-way agreements with the US and third countries could be promoted.

These are the activities that the Delegation of Euskadi in the United States will be performing:

• Institutional relations:  Strengthening of relationships between US and Basque institutions, both private and public.
   
  Business and economic relations: promoting the cooperation, trade, and exchange of commercial, economic and industrial relations between Basque and American companies.
• Promotion of multisectorial activities: From cultural, to scientific, technological, environmental, agricultural or any area of government where Euskadi has jurisdiction and where a common interest is detected.
• Participation of Euskadi in Multilateral Institutions, taking advantage of the location of the Headquarters of the United Nations Organization  in New York and promotion  of three-way agreements with other countries within the scope of the UN.
• Maintaining relations with the Basque Diaspora in the United States, strengthening cultural and social relations between the United States and Euskadi.
• Organization of Basque delegations to the US and US delegations to Euskadi in all the areas mentioned above.
• Euskadi's projection overseas, as a way towards integration into global arenas that will allow us to add our input in different management areas that we have experience on.
• Communication and image: promotion of Euskadi in the US and world media taking advantage of the potential global exposure that could be obtained in New York, a city with worldwide recognition.
• Participation in events, conferences or seminars of interest that are organized in the US.
• Writing industry reports and sharing information that will help detect areas of interest that will be instrumental in identifying areas of cooperation between both countries.
• Serve as a forum to organize meetings between representatives of institutions, and social and economic agents that will promote the exchange and cooperation between Euskadi and the United States.

Decree of creation

Business and economic activities