MADRID, June 19. /ITAR-TASS/. King Felipe VI of Spain has taken an oath on the country’s Constitution and has been proclaimed monarch.

Several minutes before that, the abdicated King Juan Carlos I handed to the new king the red sash, the regalia of commander-in-chief of the country’s armed forces.

 

The abdication of King Juan Carlos I

Juan Carlos I announced his decision to abdicate in favor of his son Felipe June 2. The king explained his decision by the need to hand over responsibilities to the new generation.

“When I look back, I get a feeling of profound pride about Spain’s achievements,” Juan Carlos I noted. “The economic crisis that hit our country has led to social inequality and made us analyze the mistakes. Spain’s revival should be led by the new generation that has vigor and ability to overcome all difficulties,” the monarch said.

In accordance with the Constitution of Spain, the country’s parliament was forced to approve a special draft bill that allowed the crown prince take the throne. The document was supported by deputies of Popular Party and Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, as well as by several other major political forces. Deputies of left-wing parties led by United Left coalition, deputies of nationalist parties of Catalonia and the Basque Country advocating sovereignty of these autonomous regions. Deputies of the Convergence and Union, the ruling coalition of Catalonia, abstained from voting.

Several thousands of people took to the main square of Madrid – Puerta del Sol — demanding the introduction of a republican form of government in Spain.