Natural Park

Euromed 2025

by Richard Zimmermann

The 2025 EUROMED issue is dedicated this year to European resources. Almost full freedom was given to the postal administrations to design their stamps, and, as a consequence, individual stamps describe very different topics including national parks, natural (local) or energy resources (wind and sun), landscapes, food, crafts or access to raw material (e.g., salt), with Türkiye showing in a souvenir sheet all possible country resources. So far, 14 countries have released their stamps with the most ciommon date on July 14, 2025. Those countries include: Bosnia Herzegovina (July 10, 2025), strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) derived products, preserves, jam; Croatia (July 14), the Neretva Delta; Cyprus (July 9), wind turbine; Egypt (July 14), energy, oil, sea resources; France (July 11), sea and shore; Greece (July 7), sea sponge (Spongia mollissima) and boat; Malta (July 9), sculptor and building; Montenegro (July 14), Ulcinjska Solana (Ulcinj saltworks); Morocco (July ?), natural resources, “Cap des Trois Fourches” (Cape of the Three Forks), Ramsar wetland; Portugal (July 10), carob collecting and salt harvesting; Slovenia (July 11), karst edge; Spain (July 8), flower (Paeonia cambessedesii), Balearic peony; Tunisia (July 7), Galite and Zembra national parks; Türkiye (Turkey) (July 7), landscape with different resources.

The Euromed association includes also Albania, Algeria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine. With the exception of Albania which always issues their Euromed stamp with a delay of one year, there is limited chances that one of these other countries will participate this year, but who knows?

Information was mainly provided by Med Achour Ali Ahmed (Algeria) and Enzo Cafaro (Italy). Thanks to both of them.

China Spain 2023

by Richard Zimmermann

Enzo Cafaro (Italy) provided information about the stamps involving China and Spain celebrating 50 years of relationship between both countries. This issue was announced for March 2023 in the Spanish philatelic program, but no stamps were released by this country since, except that the design of the stamps was shown. Now, we learned that the Chinese stamps will be released on May 10, 2023 and the announcement from Chinese post confirms the joint status of the issue which is made of identical stamps showing Flamingos in national park lakes (Fuente de Piedra Lake and Hengshui Lake). From the Spanish side, Enzo could provide the picture of the FDC which confirms the same date of issue. China will issue its stamps in miniature sheets of 12 [3×4].

National Parks Azerbaijan Russia

by Richard Zimmermann

Discovered by Jaap Sarelse (the Netherlands), a joint issue released on September 16, 2022, between Azerbaijan and Russia we had not seen so far. At the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between both countries, souvenir sheets illustrating the Shirvan National Park (Azerbaijan) and the Samara Luka National Park (Russia) have been issued. The Russian souvenir sheet belongs to the “Natural Heritage of Russia” series. The Azerbaijan souvenir sheet features the goitered gazelle and a bee-eater. The Russian souvenir sheet, with a non rectangular frame,, shows lake and mountains with fox and black-tailed eagle.