Since a new Socialist government took office in Spain in April
2004, the country's foreign policy has undergone a period of intense
activity and reappraisal that is almost without precedent in recent
decades. In a very short time, the Government has made far-reaching
decisions and has started to express a new vision of Spain's role
in Europe and the world, to which party leaders had given considerable
time and thought during their years in opposition.
The Government came to power just a few weeks after the
worst terrorist attack in Spanish history, the devastating bombing
of the Madrid railroad system on March 11. Until then, the terrorism that had been a
scourge on our society had originated within our borders. The international dimension
of the Madrid attacks, associated with the Al-Qaeda network, tragically added
our capital city to the list of terrorist targets that have recently included New York,
Casablanca, Istanbul and Bali. It follows, therefore, that the fight against terrorism is
one of the main priorities of our foreign policy.
The Socialist Party has always maintained that the war in Iraq,
far from being a positive contribution to the fight against terrorism,
is actually counterproductive in the struggle against such a complex
phenomenon. The intervention in Afghanistan, a training base for
terrorist networks under the shelter of the Taliban regime, was
quite different. In that case there was wide consensus in the
international community on the need for firm action, endorsed
by the relevant United Nations Security Council
resolutions.
The new government's rapid decisions
to withdraw Spanish troops from
Iraq and to strengthen our country's
presence in Afghanistan both had the
same objective, namely to readjust the
deployment of our troops abroad according
to the real priorities in the fight
against militant Islamic terrorism. Underlying
these decisions was our strongly
held conviction that only a profound respect for international law can provide
the legitimacy needed to sustain the fight
against this strategic threat.
The United Nations, for all its imperfections,
remains the only institution
that can confer legitimacy and authorize
the use of force in the defense of international
law. The difficulties experienced
over Iraq provide clear proof of this.
Spain has moved decisively to support
effective multilateralism. The decision by
the United States to narrow the gap between
its policy and that of other members
of the Security Council enabled the
Council to adopt Resolution 1546, which
endorsed the formation of an interim
Iraqi government and the holding of
elections by January 2005, and outlined
the role of the United Nations in the political
transition. Washington's move
gives grounds for optimism that Transatlantic
relations can be revitalized, as they
must be, on the basis of respect, sincerity
and loyalty among allies. Naturally,
Spain seeks to maintain the closest possible
relations with its U.S. ally.
The challenge we face is to make the
United Nations more dynamic and effective,
if we want it to be respected by the
international community.We are pleased
that a Spaniard, Javier RupŽrez, has been
named the first Executive Director of the
recently strengthened UN Counter-Terrorism
Committee.
When we decided to increase our
presence in the International Security
Assistance Force in Afghanistan, we also
made changes in our domestic political
procedures. From now on, the Government
will always seek Parliament's approval
before sending troops on
peacekeeping operations. We are convinced
that only the full support of our
society, expressed through its elected
representatives, can sustain the effort
and the sacrifices required to meet our international responsibilities. The people
of Spain need to understand the link between
their everyday security and Spanish
participation in missions abroad,
which always entail a degree of risk.
"Transatlantic relations must be revitalized on the basis
of respect, sincerity and loyalty among allies
When political parties are united in supporting our foreign and
security policies, we are strong, whereas division makes us vulnerable.
That is why the Government has called on the opposition to help
rebuild a consensus in basic areas of our international policy.
Such a consensus cannot merely be a return to the situation that
existed in the 1990s because international circumstances have
changed. In order for Spain to remain respected in the world,
we cannot allow Spanish foreign policy to be subject to major
variations each time the balance of governmental power changes.
We call on the opposition's sense of national responsibility to
recognize this reality and to agree on some basic principles that
would give continuity to our international presence. This consensus
should be built in Parliament, the center of Spanish political
life, following an open debate among all Spaniards. Although we
did not support the war in Iraq, we are fully aware of the need
to support stability in that country during its complex transition
process. The Spanish Government has established three lines of
action: to play a constructive role at the United Nations,
as evidenced in the negotiations to approve
Resolution 1546; to maintain the
considerable financial assistance program
that Spain has already undertaken;
and, through active diplomacy, to encourage
Iraq's neighbors to cooperate in
the country's stabilization.
"In recent months we have re-established a constructive
dialogue with France and Germany
Another fundamental priority of
Spanish foreign policy has been to return
to the heart of Europe. In recent
months, we have re-established a constructive
dialogue with France and Germany.
We have also consolidated our
relations with Portugal, and we wish to
continue to collaborate closely with the
United Kingdom, including on all issues
concerning Gibraltar. Together with our
EU partners, we are restoring a climate
of normality in relations between the
European Union and the United States.
In Europe, the most outstanding
achievement has undoubtedly been approval
of a proposed constitution that
will allow the European Union to become
a political community based on
solidarity and common values. The constitutional
treaty agreed in June 2004,
after months of arduous negotiations, is
an innovative and balanced document.
From our point of view, we are particularly
pleased that, inter alia, it explicitly
recognizes the value of all the languages
of Spain, including Catalan and Basque,
and consolidates the future of the Canary
Islands within the framework of the
European Union.
The Government wants Spain to be
one of the first member states to ratify
the constitution. After consultations
with all political forces, a referendum
will be called in the coming months to
give the population the chance to reaffirm
its European commitment.
The choice of individuals to head
the leading European institutions has
greatly favored the Spanish candidates.
Javier Solana was confirmed by broad
consensus to serve a second term as
High Representative for Common Foreign
and Security Policy and will become
the first Foreign Minister of the European
Union, if the new constitution is
ratified. JosŽ Borell has been elected
President of the European Parliament.
JosŽ Manuel Dur‹o Barroso, the former
Prime Minister of Portugal, who will be
the next President of the European
Commission, is a good friend of Spain.
The appointments of Mr. Solana and
Mr. Borrell are due mainly to their personal
capabilities, but they can also be
seen as an acknowledgement of the positive
role played by Spain in the construction
of Europe since its accession in
1986, to which successive governments
have made their contributions. The future
influence of Spain in Brussels will
largely depend on the country's ability to
develop a concept of Europe in which
the defense of national interests can be
incorporated into a framework of integration.
This is another reason why it is
so important to achieve a united front
among the nation's leading political
forces, particularly in the light of the
forthcoming negotiations on a new financial
outline for the EU budget.
The European Union has recently
been wholly engaged in major internal
challenges: monetary union, ment and the European constitution.
The Spanish Government thinks the
time has come for Europe to look beyond
its frontiers and to prioritize external
challenges, beginning with its
immediate surroundings. A common
foreign policy will gain credibility only if
it becomes operational in relations with
the European Union's neighbors to the
East and in the Southern Mediterranean.
For this reason we shall be spearheading
the Union's "New Neighbors initiative
and seeking to make Europe's voice
heard in efforts to restore the Middle
East peace process.
Spain also seeks to implement a
comprehensive vision of relations with
the Maghreb countries (Algeria, Morocco
and Tunisia) that goes beyond traditional
alliances with individual states.
We wish to promote close relations with
these neighboring countries, so that we
can together tackle international challenges
such as terrorism, the management
of migration flows and the
building of a region of co-prosperity
that fulfils the legitimate political and
economic ambitions of citizens, especially
young people, on both sides of the
Mediterranean.We must make the most
of the fact that our economies are complementary.
A basic condition of achieving these
objectives is to strengthen the Euro-
Mediterranean partnership and advance
the Maghreb integration process, which
has been held up mainly by the Western
Sahara conflict. Thirty years of recent
history prove that we cannot impose a
solution to this conflict in which there
are victors and vanquished. Spain has accordingly
decided to abandon a policy of
passive neutrality and adopt one of active
diplomacy. The aim is to foster dialogue
between the parties and countries
concerned, led by the United Nations, in the hope of finding a fair and definitive
solution that respects international law
and the right to self-determination of
the Saharawi people.
"A main focus of our government will be human rights,
social cohesion and the fight against hunger and poverty
The government will also give a high priority to Ibero-America
(the group composed of Spain, Portugal and the Spanish and Portuguese
speaking countries of Latin America). In recent years our family
ties have become stronger thanks to investment by Spanish companies
on the other side of the Atlantic and to immigration from those
countries. Our aim is that this growing interdependency should
go hand in hand with closer political links in our bilateral relations.
This will involve more frequent visits to Latin America by Spanish
leaders, stepped-up bilateral contacts and greater convergence
on major international issues. A recent example of such convergence
was the common position adopted by Ibero-American members of the
Security Council during the negotiation of Resolution 1546. Another
expression of our commitment to the region is Spain's contribution,
together with Brazil, Argentina, Chile and other countries, to
peacekeeping operations in Haiti. In the multilateral sphere,
we will do our utmost to make the recently established. General Secretariat of the Ibero-American
summits an effective instrument for
promoting our common political
agenda.
Spain has also started to reinforce its
presence in Sub-Saharan Africa by developing
a policy for enhanced cooperation,
and by tackling important issues of
mutual interest, such as migration and
terrorism, with African countries. In
Asia, the government intends to pursue a
more active foreign policy toward such
countries as China, India and Japan,
among others.
One of the hallmarks of our government will be a focus on human
rights, social cohesion, the fight against hunger and poverty,
and efforts to end the exclusion of the poorest and least advantaged
from modern society. In this context, we are resuming a dialogue
with representatives of civil society to improve the effectiveness
of our foreign assistance and cooperation policies and to guarantee
the best use of resources provided by the Spanish taxpayer for
foreign development. We are also seeking the best possible coordination
with our European partners and with international development
agencies. As all this demonstrates, we have undertaken a large
number of difficult but essential foreign policy commitments in
a very short time. We were not able to enjoy the traditional 100
days grace period usually accorded a new Government to develop
its initial policies. Now is perhaps the time to establish the
calm atmosphere we need in order to reach agreement with the opposition
on national foreign policy priorities that we can all support.
Miguel çngel Moratinos is Minister of Foreign Affairs of Spain. Before joining his country's new
Socialist government, he was the European Union's Special Representative for the Middle East
Peace Process. A career diplomat, he has served as Ambassador to Israel, Director General of Foreign
Policy for Africa and the Middle East and Director General of the Institute for Cooperation
with the Arab World.
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