Eduardo González
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, appeared yesterday before the plenary session of the Congress, at his own request, to take stock of the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU. It was the first face to face between Sánchez and the leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, in the new legislature and, as was more than predictable, the appearance has become a direct duel between both, which they took advantage of to bring out all their mutual grievances (the amnesty, the pacts with Bildu or Vox or the policy towards the Middle East) and to meet again in a bilateral meeting, which will take place this Friday in Congress.
During his initial intervention, Sánchez affirmed that the Presidency has been “a true success” and has made it possible to close “more than 50 legislative files”, a figure “above average”. Likewise, he assured that “Spain has had a leading role and protagonist in many advances, such as the migration and asylum agreement that was announced today,” and that “far away is that self-conscious country that looked at its neighboring countries with a mixture of inferiority.”
The head of the Executive recalled that on July 1, after assuming the EU Presidency, he himself went to Kyiv, where he saw “flags of Europe and Spain as a form of gratitude for the humanitarian aid.” “That day I made a commitment that Ukraine would be a member of the European family and last week that commitment was fulfilled”, after the European Council gave the green light to the start of “negotiations for the accession of Ukraine and Moldova, a historical milestone,” he highlighted.
“Our Presidency has helped set the direction,” said Sánchez. “We have approved ambitious reforms, such as strengthening economic security, promoting green energy or the first Artificial Intelligence Law,” he added. “Thanks to the leadership of Spain during the EU Presidency and Minister Teresa Ribera, an agreement has been reached at COP28 that marks the beginning of the end of the dominance of fossil fuels,” he continued.
“We have managed to protect consumers against some energy companies, we have managed to intervene in the electricity market in the middle of a crisis and we have defended and implemented the Iberian exception” which has allowed “saving 5.1 billion euros for consumers and reducing the invoice by 27%,” he assured. “We are the country in Europe in which the price of electricity has been reduced the most,” he added.
Sánchez also recalled that under the Presidency of Spain a meeting between the EU and CELAC was organized for the first time in “years” and “very significant progress has been achieved with Mercosur” and highlighted the election of Vice President Nadia Calviño as “the first woman to lead of the EIB”, which confirms Spain’s role in Europe and “the Government’s feminist policy”.
Pedro Sánchez also warned that “some enemies of the EU are sitting in Congress”, in an implicit but undisguised reference to Vox. “They are those who take photos with Putin and have done everything they can to divide us using international misfortunes, but they have not succeeded and, except for the extreme right, no one wants to leave the EU anymore,” he highlighted.
Regarding the crisis in the Middle East, Sánchez stated that “we must condemn, and we condemn, of course, the attacks by the terrorist group Hamas, but, with the same values, we ask that the death of civilians in Gaza be stopped.” “At some point during the legislature we will have to address the recognition of the Palestinian State in the Spanish Parliament,” he warned.
Dialogue offer to Feijóo
Pedro Sánchez concluded his first intervention by inviting Feijóo to meet with him. “There is enormous plurality and diversity in this Congress, no one has a majority to impose their postulates, that is what the citizens have chosen, and that is why we will make dialogue our tool and agreement our goal,” he assured. “The opposition cannot continue fighting, families and companies demand other things and the best policy is an agreement between different people,” he warned.
For this reason, he offered the PP leader “dialogue whenever he wants, wherever he wants and about whatever he wants, but dialogue, not tantrums.” “I have offered you three agreements: eliminate the term ‘diminished’ from article 49 of the Constitution, reform the autonomous financing system and renew the CGPJ, but you can add anything you want,” he concluded.
Feijóo: “Dialogue without a mediator and in Congress”
In his first reply, Alberto Núñez Feijóo began forcefully: “I said last week that we are living in a time of national shame due to the amnesty, but I never knew how far he could go until he gave the Mayor of Pamplona to Bildu. “We are facing an international shame and embarrassment and a moral indecency.”
Likewise, he assured that the Spanish Presidency has been “disappointing” and Pedro Sánchez “busted it” with an electoral campaign and with several “months” without a Government in which the members of the Executive were “more concerned about the amnesty than about achieving the objectives.” of the EU.” Feijóo recognized Sánchez’s support for Ukraine, but recalled that “he has not brought military aid to Ukraine to Parliament” because “he could not, his partners would not have allowed it”, while denouncing that “Spain has imported more than 7,000 million of euros of Russian gas; “This has served to indirectly finance Putin’s war.”
The leader of the PP harshly criticized Pedro Sánchez’s recent intervention in the European Parliament (in which he warned the leader of the EPP, the German Manfred Weber, against the agreements between PP and Vox), “In the EU they are beginning to know the real Sánchez”, Feijóo stated. “Spain is a matter of debate in Europe due to the degradation of the rule of law and the regression of democratic rights,” he denounced. “Spain is concerned about its pacts and their unreliability” because “no European government relies on those who have murderers on their lists, none relies on those who want to destroy their country,” he added.
Regarding the offer of dialogue, Feijóo responded, paraphrasing Sánchez: “You said that it will be with whoever he wants: without a mediator, are they capable of dialogue without a mediator? Wherever: not in Geneva, in Congress. Whenever he wants, next Friday, without a mediator, without arrogance, without impositions and with an agenda. I am not going to ask for amnesties and self-determination referendums, but what I am not going to allow is for him to disrespect the PP,” he stated.
Sánchez: “See you on Friday in Congress”
In his first counter-reply, Pedro Sánchez recalled that his appearance was dedicated to the Presidency of Spain in the EU and issues approved in the Council of Europe. “I expected him to establish some position, but nothing. Nothing at all about the financial framework, nothing at all about the electricity market, nothing at all about International Intelligence, nor is there a position on Israel, on the migration pact. There is nothing but tantrums and reproaches. It seems that all this is minutiae that he has dispatched quickly,” he asserted.
“You reproaches me for debating with Weber in the European Parliament,” but “what I did was put the contradictions of the European PP in front of the mirror,” he stated. “If it bothers you that I remind Weber and Europe of their agreements with Vox, break them. Why don’t you do it?” he asked him.
Regarding the offer of dialogue, Sánchez accepted Feijóo’s proposal for it to be carried out in Congress, although he warned that it is very unusual in other countries for meetings between the head of the Executive and the leader of the opposition to take place at parliamentary headquarters. “I don’t give up on him coming to La Moncloa at some point and being able to receive him as head of the opposition, but we’ll see you on Friday and we’ll talk about whatever you want,” he said. “The Government’s will is to reach agreements with all political parties,” including “the main opposition party,” Sánchez assured at the end of his first counterreply. “We are obliged” to do so after an election that left such unclear results, he added.
During his second turn of reply, Feijóo warned that the President of the Government is “obsessed” with him and asked him to treat him “as he treats Bildu’s spokesperson well.” Likewise, he accused the Government of “making a fool of ourselves” in Europe for “defending the migration and asylum pact while one of his ministers, Sira Rego, criticizes it.” “Sanchez tells me that I have not come to talk about the EU. I tell you that his Presidency is the most expensive in history, with 160 million,” he added.
Junts and Belarra: official languages and relations with Israel
Regarding the interventions of the rest of the groups, Sánchez assured Míriam Nogueras, from Junts, that the Government will “continue working so that co-official languages are recognized at the European level.” “Diplomatic work has been launched, we have said that Spain should bear the costs of making Catalan, Basque and Galician official languages in the EU. My absolute commitment,” he added.
Likewise, he warned the leader of Podemos (and minister during his previous coalition government), Ione Belarra, that it would be “a mistake to break diplomatic relations with Israel” because “we need Israel to correct this response and, when peace is achieved, “to achieve mutual recognition of the two States, Israel will be needed.”
