"Just like Brussels and Paris, Lisbon and Madrid must be connected by high speed in a direct way and without transfers", stated María Guardiola at the VIII Forum of the Southwest Iberian Corridor Madrid-Lisbon Connection.

The president of the autonomous government of Extremadura, a region on the border with the Alentejo and Beira Interior, considered it "unjustifiable and unacceptable" that two European Union capitals do not have a direct train connection.

María Guardiola highlighted that, ironically, Spain is the European country and the second in the world (after China) with the most high-speed kilometres, but the Extremadura region is outside that rail map and there are no fast train connections with Portugal.

The president of Extremadura recalled that going from Lisbon to Madrid by train today takes nine and a half hours and requires two transfers and that the only way to make the journey directly is by plane or by road, two very polluting types of transport, unlike the railway, the European commitment to sustainable mobility.

For Guardiola, the fast and direct rail connection between the two capitals is justified, for example, by the number of passengers on planes between Lisbon and Madrid, which she said represents the largest number of international travelers at the Spanish airport.

The European elections in June are "the perfect moment" to demand the completion of the railway connection between Lisbon and Madrid by 2030, as foreseen in several European documents, including for the football championship that Spain, Portugal, and Morocco will organise that year be "a world cup in conditions", defended María Guardiola.

The president of the Junta of Extremadura (regional government) therefore asked all candidates to "clearly show their commitment to an issue of vital importance" for the economic and social development of Portugal, Spain, and the European Union.

"High speed must be a reality between the two Iberian capitals", stressed María Guardiola, who added that no more delays and disregard can be allowed.

There are currently no trains between Lisbon and Madrid, high-speed or otherwise (neither in Extremadura, passing through Elvas and Badajoz, nor in Castilla and León, passing through Vilar Formoso and Fuentes de Oñoro).

The railway connection through Vilar Formoso-Fuentes de Oñoro (through which the SudExpress passed, bound for the French border of Hendaye) was interrupted in March 2020, due to the pandemic, and was never recovered, due to lack of interest from the Spanish operator.

In 2011, the Lusitânia train, the only direct train connection between Lisbon and Madrid, which was via the Caia-Badajoz border, had already been suspended.

The connection between Porto and Vigo should be the first high-speed rail connection between Spain and Portugal.

In November last year, Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP) pointed to the start of work on the high-speed rail connection between Porto and Vigo in 2027/2028, revealing that studies are already underway in both countries.