Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez departed Ankara on Monday after his plane was forced to make an emergency landing in the Turkish capital due to a technical issue while en route to Armenia, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
His aircraft took off after the issue was resolved, following an overnight stay in Ankara under standard security procedures.
Sanchez was traveling to Yerevan to attend a meeting of the European Political Community when the plane was forced to land in Ankara on Sunday evening.
“The Spanish delegation will spend the night in Ankara before resuming their journey to Armenia in the morning,” the Spanish government said in a statement on Sunday, without providing details about the nature of the technical problem.
Spain’s state news agency EFE, citing government sources, reported that the problem was not serious but that security protocols were followed.
Sanchez left his hotel at around 8 a.m. local time and traveled to Esenboğa Airport, where his plane departed for the Armenian capital.
European leaders are gathering in Yerevan for the EPC meeting, which begins Monday.
It was not the first time Sanchez experienced a problem with an official aircraft. On September 4, 2025, he was unable to complete a trip to Paris for a meeting on Ukraine due to a technical malfunction and attended the meeting online, according to media reports.
Turkish Minute with reporting from Agence France-Presse