Sánchez condemns the “dangerous normalization of the use of force” and affirms that “democracy cannot be taken for granted”

Eduardo González The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, inaugurated the IV Meeting in Defense of Democracy this Saturday, in which he warned that, in a context of “attacks on the multilateral system and international law” and the “dangerous normalization of the use of force,” the response “cannot be merely defensive,” but rather it is necessary to demonstrate “that democracy is not only defended, but is strengthened and perfected day by day.” Barcelona hosted representatives from 21 international delegations this Saturday, most of them headed by their respective leaders, from Europe, Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean, within the framework of the 4th Meeting in Defense of Democracy, an initiative launched by Sánchez and the President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in September 2014 on the sidelines of the General Assembly in New York. Among the attendees, in addition to Sánchez and Lula, were the President of the European Council, António Costa; the Presidents of Colombia, Gustavo Petro; Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum; Uruguay, Yamandú Orsi; South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa; and Ireland, Catherine Connolly; the Prime Minister of Lithuania, Inga Ruginiéné, among others. Former President of Chile Gabriel Boric, another of the initiative's driving forces, also participated. During the meeting, President Sánchez held bilateral meetings with several leaders, including Claudia Sheinbaum, who has offered Mexico as the host country for the next Meeting in Defense of Democracy in 2027. This was the first bilateral meeting with the Mexican president since she took office and since the diplomatic crisis that arose in October 2024 when she excluded King Felipe VI from the guest list for her inauguration because he had not responded to a letter from his predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, urging him to apologize for the Spanish conquest. “Democracy cannot be taken for granted” “The context is clear: democracy cannot be taken for granted,” Sánchez declared during the opening ceremony. “We are seeing attacks on the multilateral system, attempt after attempt to challenge the rules of international law, and a dangerous normalization of the use of force. Within our societies, inequality is growing, and disinformation is eroding trust in governments and, therefore, in our democratic institutions,” he continued. “That is the real risk facing all societies, all nations: that democracy will be hollowed out from within while being attacked from without,” he warned. “And that is why our response cannot be merely defensive: it is not enough to resist, we must propose, we must lead, we must demonstrate that democracy is not only defended, but strengthened and perfected day by day,” he added. Separately, the President of Mexico thanked Claudia Sheinbaum “for offering Mexico to host the next Summit in Defense of Democracy when, together, we set a date for 2027.” Three priorities The forum was structured around three thematic blocks: the defense of institutions and multilateralism, digital technologies and the fight against disinformation and extremism, and the promotion of social justice against inequality. Regarding the first, Sánchez defended the “international order based on rules, cooperation, and legitimate institutions” and warned that “the multilateral system urgently needs renewal, and we must do so thoroughly.” “We know that it can only survive if it is reformed to reflect the reality of the world in the 21st century, as President Lula has said on many occasions,” he continued. To achieve this, it must be “more effective, more efficient, more transparent, more democratic, more inclusive, and more representative,” and for this reason, “the time has come for the United Nations to be renewed, reformed, and led by a woman: it is not only a matter of justice, it is also a matter of credibility.” Regarding digital governance, Sánchez warned that “technology can undoubtedly be a tool for progress, but it doesn't govern itself, nor do all the interests at stake point in the same direction.” “Without rules, technology divides us and makes us more dependent,” he stated. “We cannot accept that disinformation should be a determining factor, as it is currently doing in our societies (...), nor that algorithms should reward hatred, polarization, confrontation, violent messages, or that technological power should remain outside of democratic control,” he declared. “The internet knows no borders, and therefore, either we move forward together or no one will. Either we establish common rules or they will be imposed on us, because the digital space is either democratic or it will cease to exist,” he declared. Regarding the third area, Sánchez warned that the democratic agenda must also be “the agenda of social justice,” because “inequality, besides being unjust, is hardly compatible with healthy and strong democracies.” “When progress is not distributed, when opportunities do not reach everyone, when large segments of the population feel that the system is not responding, democracy loses legitimacy, and that is where extremism grows,” because “extremism does not widen the divide, what it does is occupy the space,” he added.

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