King Emeritus Juan Carlos I turns 85 this Thursday. The former monarch is celebrating his third consecutive birthday in Abu Dhabi, where he took up residence in August 2020 to prevent scandals surrounding the legacy he was leading at the time from damaging the crown. Juan Carlos I no longer has any pending court cases in either Spain or Switzerland. The only outstanding cause known is the harassment lawsuit filed by his former lover Corinna Larsen, and it is a civil lawsuit threatening to pay him compensation. In the final installment, the Court of Appeal for England and Wales granted him a partial victory by acknowledging his immunity on the files prior to his abdication in 2014. It is believed in those close to him that he will only be back in Spain after the general elections.
The Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, assured this Thursday that the hypothetical return of Juan Carlos de Borbón is a “solely personal” decision. “The government has very little say (…) We walk hand in hand with the royal family,” he added of the Emeritus King’s establishment in the Emirates. Bolaños has granted La Sexta an interview from the Spanish Embassy in Rome, where he is part of the Spanish delegation attending the funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVIl. The minister stressed the “honor” that Queen Emeritus Sofía, “who has received many gestures of affection in the Vatican”, led the Spanish delegation. Similar to Bolaños, Education Minister and PSOE spokesperson Pilar Alegría has also expressed her respect for Juan Carlos I’s decision to continue in Abu Dhabi, although she has also emphasized that “Spanish citizens would certainly see with.” good eyes an explanation”, as the Executive had already explained on previous occasions.
The emeritus monarch’s birthday is “physically and morally very good”, Efe quoted people close to him as saying. His last visit to Spain last May caused unease among the government during the days he was in Sanxenxo (Pontevedra) with a group of friends. “He missed an opportunity to explain and apologize,” government spokeswoman Isabel Rodríguez said. The media frenzy surrounding his stay in the marina alarmed the royal household and before he left Spain father and son had a conversation in which the latter asked for prudence and discretion.
Juan Carlos I scheduled his private visit to Pontevedra two and a half months after the Supreme Court’s prosecutors dropped their investigations into him. Following this closure, the King Emeritus expressed his desire to continue living in the United Arab Emirates, although in a letter to King Felipe VI he also announced his intention to return to Spain “often”. In the letter, he also left the door open to returning permanently but residing outside of La Zarzuela. “Want, want, another thing is that I can. But he has already received his punishment for the news and his tax penalties. He can’t do any more,” says one of the people with whom he maintains telephone contact, to Efe.
Don Juan Carlos was last seen in September attending the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in London with Kings Felipe and Letizia and Queen Sofia. His presence resulted in the first picture of the two since establishing his residence in Abu Dhabi after they met at the Palacio de la Zarzuela in May, before Juan Carlos I completed his first trip to Spain.
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