Jesús González / Special envoy
The North American Secretary of State, Antony J. Blinken, and the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, held a bilateral meeting at the United States Department of State in Washington, in which they highlighted the excellent bilateral relations between the two. countries.
The appointment has lasted approximately an hour and a half. In a subsequent press conference at the Spanish embassy in Washington, Minister Albares expressed “the importance that the United States attaches to Spain as a partner, friend and ally, which is why it listens and collaborates decisively with us.” Likewise, he has highlighted “the extraordinary harmony between the Administration of President Biden and the Government of President Sánchez.” Blinken has stated that the meeting was agreed upon last summer with the intention of working together for peace and other main current international issues.
Regarding the recognition of the Palestinian State by Spain, it was not a meeting to explain the decision, but rather an exchange of information on the situation of the Gaza conflict and the crisis in the Middle East. “Secretary Blinken is committed to achieving peace in the Middle East, a definitive and stable peace, but at the same time realistic and stable,” said Albares.
Regarding Spain’s position on recognizing the Palestinian State, the minister assured that “the United States knows Spain’s reasons, respects the Spanish position and has not made any comments on the matter.”
Albares has not confirmed the date of the recognition that will take place in the Council of Ministers, despite the fact that yesterday High Representative Borrell and information published in Ireland spoke of next May 21.
Albares’ stay in Washington coincided with the approval by the United Nations General Assembly of a resolution that calls for the full incorporation of Palestine as a member state of the organization, giving more voice to the Palestinians, who currently have state status. Observer. The resolution, co-sponsored by dozens of countries, including Spain, passed with 143 votes in favor, nine against – among them Israel, the United States, Hungary, Argentina and the Czech Republic – and 25 abstentions, including that of the United Kingdom.
Yesterday, at an electoral rally in Barcelona, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, referred to the support given by Spain to the UN General Assembly resolution and assured that his Government will recognize Palestine as a State, with or without the support right.
Disinformation memorandum
At the meeting held today in Washington, both leaders signed an agreement to combat disinformation. The memorandum comes a week after the approval of the European Union Press Freedom Law. Secretary Blinken has noted in this regard that “this is an important memorandum for democracies. Disinformation and propaganda manipulation are affecting our democracies, elections, and institutions. For this reason, Spain and the United States are going to work together and united in this battle against disinformation, in support of truthful information and the work of journalists in the exercise of their profession.”
The bilateral meeting agenda, described by the participants as “progressive”, has included issues such as the rights of the LGTBI community or the international vision from an approach based on multilateralism, in which both administrations recognize great harmony. Regarding bilateral relations, Albares and Blinken have expressed the excellent moment they are going through and have carried out a fruitful exchange of information regarding the evolution of the war in Ukraine and aid to this country, the situation in Gaza and the Middle East, the next NATO Summit and update on the Palomares issue.
War in Ukraine
Minister Albares, first of all, has expressed to Secretary of State Blinken the satisfaction of the Spanish Government with the unblocking of the sending of the aid package from the United States to Ukraine. In the same way, he has expressed the firm Spanish position, in line with the common foreign policy of the European Union, to continue supporting Ukraine, economically and militarily, to defend itself from Russian aggression, “as much as necessary.”
The position of Spain and the United States does not differ and both have reiterated that all necessary efforts will be made to reintegrate the territories occupied by the war into Ukraine, as well as to help in the subsequent reconstruction of the country. Likewise, Albares has announced that the negotiations for the Spain-Ukraine bilateral security agreement have been concluded, but has not yet specified its content.
Recognition of the Palestinian State
Regarding the Gaza conflict and the resulting crisis in the Middle East, Minister Albares stated that the conversation did not even try to explain, much less ask permission, for the decision already taken by the Spanish Government to recognize the State. Palestinian. Since this position is known by the North American Administration, what has occurred is an exchange of information and opinions on the situation.
Both positions are very similar, in favor of an immediate and permanent ceasefire, as well as the delivery of all Israeli hostages into the hands of Hamas, an issue on which Albares has expressed special gratitude for the efforts that the United States is making. The two leaders have spoken about Gaza specifically, but also about the West Bank and the regional repercussions of the conflict.
According to diplomatic sources, the United States is perfectly aware of the Spanish position of recognizing the Palestinian State, given that it was a point in the program of the Spanish Socialist Workers Party presented for the general elections of July 2023, it was part of the coalition government agreement and, always It has been in line with Spain’s traditional foreign policy. Said recognition, according to the same sources, could take place on May 21 in the ordinary Council of Ministers.
In this sense, the Spanish Government considers that recognition is not an end point in the conflict, but rather the beginning of a process for the construction of a lasting peace. From here, many aspects will have to be negotiated, such as borders. But for all this, we will have to have agents for peace within Israel and Palestine, where Hamas does not enter, but the Palestinian Authority does.
NATO and Palomares Summit
In the extensive review of international issues carried out by Albares and Blinken, the next NATO Summit from July 9 to 11 has not been missed, as well as the election of the new Secretary General of said organization that must take place in the fall; Latin America and the Southern flank, including security problems, migration originating in the Sahel.
Finally, in purely bilateral matters, they have analyzed the situation of the cleanup of the Palomares radioactive lands, in which no agreement has been reached, but rather the work carried out by the delegations of both countries, which in the case of Spain concerns various ministries. Furthermore, the end of the presidential term and the US elections next November make it unfeasible to reach an agreement sooner, so negotiations must continue with the next US Administration.
