Maduro Sympathizer’s Hand in Spanish Diplomacy Sparks Criticism

Ben Sills and Rodrigo Orihuela

9 September 2024 at 12:59 pm·2-min read

(Bloomberg) -- Spain finds itself in a difficult position after doing Nicolás Maduro a favor by taking in a leading Venezuelan opposition figure. The man who brokered the deal is a former Socialist prime minister who has been a long-time advocate for the regime.

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José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who hails from the same leftist party as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, has been out of power since 2011 but wields an outsize influence over Spain’s foreign policy in Latin America. His role as a go-between with Caracas has invited criticism given his long-running sympathy for the political ideology of Hugo Chávez and his heir.

Those views, especially in light of the contested election in Venezuela and Maduro’s repression of dissent, are re-igniting criticism in Spain over what kind of diplomatic strings Zapatero is pulling and lay bare the country’s fumbling policy toward Venezuela, one that is in tension with the European Union and the Western allies.

The arrival in Madrid on Sunday of Edmundo González, the Venezuelan opposition’s presidential candidate, has essentially removed a political obstacle for Maduro and will test Spain’s allegiances. Sánchez is midway through a state visit to China and has been silent on the matter so far — as have been far-left partners who have been sympathetic to Chavismo.

The bloc’s own top diplomat, Josep Borrell — a Spaniard and fellow Socialist — has said that González “appears to be the winner of the presidential elections.” Meanwhile, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares told El Pais on Sunday that the winner of the election will probably never be known, since Maduro hasn’t released the full records of the results.

Spain is home to one of the largest Venezuelan communities abroad — many opposition figures including Leopoldo López live there — and their presence is a politically charged issue in the country. A frequent attack line by conservatives in Spain is to accuse the government of acting as stooges to Maduro alongside a debate on limiting migration.

And few people are more vilified by the Spanish right than Zapatero, largely because of his ties with Venezuela. There was a famous incident in 2007 when Chávez interrupted Zapatero during a speech and the Spanish king piped up to say “Will you shut up?”

Spain is among the main countries with strong ties to Venezuela that hasn’t either recognized Maduro as the winner of the recent elections nor demanded new polls.

The question now is whether González’s arrival in Spain will shift that position.

But, since taking office, Sánchez hasn’t made a mark on Venezuelan policy in spite of the fact that three large Spanish firms — oil producer Repsol SA, telecom operator Telefonica SA, and lender BBVA SA — are among the few foreign corporations that still operating there.