More Than Meets the Eye: The Past, Present, and Future of Spanish-Israel Relations

This article was written by Jacob Gibson, Policy Fellow 2024-2025, and originally appeared in Modern Diplomacy. The views in this article are the authors own.

elations between Spain and Israel seemed to have hit rock bottom. In May 2024, Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz ended a speech with ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.’ This was merely the latest outbreak in the cycle of deteriorating relations since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas War. Such hostility has deep roots in Spain. It is a product of Spanish society’s long-term sympathy for the Palestinian plight and diplomatic realpolitik. However, behind the fiery headlines, there are a myriad of economic and strategic partnerships tethering the two countries together. Trends within Spanish politics may also spell a brighter future for relations between the two countries.

Spain has always held an important but tragic place in Jewish memory. Its rich Jewish history came to a dramatic end with the Expulsion of 1492, launching the Sephardic Jewish diaspora. Spain was left without Jews for almost 400 years. This dark aspect of Jewish history in Spain was seen again under the Francoist regime, which ruled Spain from 1936 to 1975. It was against this dark backdrop that Israeli-Spanish relations began.

Franco’s death in 1975 and his replacement with a democratic government spurred Israel to seek better relations. But this was to no avail. Spain did not want to jeopardize their ‘traditional friendship with Arab countries,’ which was far more valuable than any potential relations with Israel. Spain had come to rely on Arab support at international forums on critical issues, and as Spanish foreign minister Castiella stated, ‘The fact that we do not have diplomatic relations with Israel works in our favor with regard to the Arabs.’ At the same time as Israel was unrecognized, the Spanish government built close relations with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). Spain approved the opening of a PLO representative office in Madrid in 1979 and hosted PLO leader Yasser Arafat.

 Spain eventually did recognize Israel and established diplomatic relations in 1986. However, this only occurred after long consultations with Arab states and a personal letter from Prime Minister González to the Arab League’s secretary general. Relations have had bright spots. There was a visit in 1991 by González, and in 2000 Spain lifted its veto on Israel’s admission to the Western European Group of the UN. Yet this has been the exception rather than the norm.

Spanish diplomatic realpolitik has remained important in preventing a closer Spanish-Israeli relationship. However, more recently, the critical factor has been widespread sympathy within Spanish society for the Palestinian cause. Former ambassador Harel characterized Israel-Spanish relations as being ‘a prisoner of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.’ In the 2000s, cartoons were released in the Spanish press comparing the plight of Palestinians in the West Bank to Jews under Nazi rule.

In this light, recent conflagrations during the Israel-Hamas War are unsurprising. They are a clear consequence of long-term Spanish attitudes and diplomacy. It was thus predictable that many left-wing Spanish ministers accused Israel of genocide and called on Spain to bring Netanyahu before the ICC. This naturally led to a diplomatic spat; Israel accused members of the Spanish government of terrorist sympathies, leading to Spain reprimanding Israeli ambassador Rodica Radian-Gordon. A similar pattern occurred a month later following Sanchez’s press conference with Belgian Prime Minister De Croo. The recognition of a Palestinian state in May 2024 was also to be expected considering the history outlined, though the consequent fallout with Israel recalling its ambassador was more severe than Spain had anticipated.

However, behind the headlines, there are deep economic and strategic linkages between the two countries. Economic trade between Spain and Israel has consistently risen in the last 20 years, with only a small dip recently. Just as critical is Spain’s strategic reliance on Israeli military technology. Recently Spain cancelled a €6.6 million contract with an Israeli military firm, and the Spanish government claims to have not bought weapons from Israel. However, Spain’s acquisition of defense and security material from Israel is extensive—one analysis estimates that since the Gaza War, these acquisitions have totaled over 1000 million euros. One anonymous Spanish general told El Mundo that ‘it is impossible to stop buying Israeli technology; it would make us a vulnerable country.’

Trends in Spanish politics also indicate that political relations may improve soon. The next election in Spain is likely not for a while, the deadline being August 2027. Yet the new Spanish government may be more pro-Israel. According to Politico, the current governing party, the Socialists, only has support from 29% of Spaniards compared to 34% support for the center-right People’s Party. The People’s Party has been resolute in its support for Israel, condemning Israel’s enemies and decrying many of the Spanish government’s actions regarding Israel. Vox’s rise also suggests future governments will be more sympathetic. Vox, formed in 2013, is already the third-largest political party in Spain, polling at 14%. From its inception, it has been forthright in its support of Israel, and its support has increased since October 7. Its leader, Santiago Abascal, has criticized virtually all of Spain’s actions vis-à-vis Israel, including Spanish recognition of a Palestinian state. A week after Spain announced recognition of the Palestinian state, Abascal even met with Netanyahu and Diaspora Minister Amichai Chickli and promised that if he were prime minister, there would be “no prizes for terrorism. No state for Palestine.”

There is thus more than meets the eye to contemporary Israel-Spain relations. The headlines obfuscate deep linkages between the two countries. Moreover, even the headlines may change in the not-so-distant future with the arrival of more sympathetic Spanish governments.