The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has ruled that Spain has given "continuity" to Francoism "without Franco". "I can't say how the position is there, but you can already imagine it," said López Obrador in a press conference in which he commented on the results of a popularity survey of world leaders - in which the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, obtained 33% acceptance as a world leader. Despite the changes that Spain has made in recent years (such as "the Moncloa Pacts" and "the advance of democracy"), the Spanish state has given "continuity" to Francoism without the dictator. Something that "doesn't help" democratic values, according to the Mexican leader.
López Obrador's attacks on the Spanish state are already a classic. In February he announced "a pause" in relations with Spain, although he eventually backtracked and clarified that he was referring to the need for a time of reflection to "internalize" that there is no longer room for "looting " or "corruption". Be that as it may, these words caused unrest within the Spanish government. Spain's foreign minister, José Manuel Albares, demanded an explanation from his Mexican counterpart, Marcelo Ebrard, and made it clear that the state executive "has not taken any action that could justify a statement of this kind." Albares recalled that the relationship between the two countries is "strategic" and that it goes "beyond verbal statements or specific words", although he pointed out that the Spanish government will always defend the interests of Spain "in any circumstance and before any other country".
The Spanish colonial legacy
Be that as it may, the president of Mexico has always been very critical of Spain's colonial legacy and on several occasions has demanded that the Spanish state apologize for this past. In this regard, he asked king Felipe VI by letter to apologize for the conquest: for "the Spanish state admit its historical responsibility" for the offences committed during the conquest of the territories that are now Mexico and "offer the appropriate apologies or political redress".