Spain no longer bucks the trend on far-right parties
The recent snap election in Andalucía saw the far-right party Vox storm into the regional parliament with 12 of the 109 seats.
Influence and image of Spain
Forty years of democratic Spain
Forty years ago this month, Spaniards overwhelmingly approved their new Constitution in a referendum which sealed the country's transition to democracy.
Forty years of democratic Spain: Political, economic, foreign policy and social change, 1978-2018
Over the past 40 years, Spain has achieved conditions that are similar –in some cases better– than in the rest of Western European nations, disproving the theory, still beloved in some quarters, of the country’s ‘exceptional nature’ or ‘anomaly’.
Spain-US relations and the transatlantic relationship
The recent visit of Felipe VI to Washington provides an opportunity to analyse and reflect on the state of bilateral relations. In the short term, these relations will be framed by the arrival of a new government in Spain and by the increasing distance between President Trump and the European allies.
Should Franco’s tomb be removed from his basilica?
there is still no basic accord in Spain about the country’s authoritarian past and how to deal with it, and hence what to do with Franco’s remains
Catalonia is not Scotland, despite appearances
Catalonia and Scotland share grievances that led them to hold referendums on independence, but this does not mean they can be bracketed together.
Three reasons to be ambitious with the Climate Change and Energy Transition Law
Spain's ratification of the Paris Agreement: an ambitious text in line with our international climate commitments.
Spain ups its global presence
Spain was ranked 11th out of 110 countries in the 2017 Elcano Global Presence Index, which measures the results of internationalisation, up from 12th in 2016.
Basque terrorist group ETA disbands after 60 years
It has been a long time coming, but finally the Basque separatist group ETA has dissolved itself, ending one of the longest terrorism campaigns in modern Europe with the loss of 854 lives, thousands injured and 79 kidnappings. The move, however, is far from healing the deep wounds among the victims’ families.
Gibraltar, a possible solution: diffused sovereignty and shared functions
Brexit opens a small window of opportunity to attempt to resolve the status of Gibraltar.
The international aid of subnational governments: the case of Spain
Spanish Autonomous Communities (regions) and municipalities gave some US$220 million in development assistance in 2015. This accounts for a third of total Spanish bilateral ODA, making Spain the world’s most decentralised donor.
Spain’s protests over pensions: no room for populist measures
Old age pensioners (OAPs) have been protesting across Spain at their ‘miserable’ pensions which since 2014 have stopped being automatically indexed to inflation and have risen by only 0.25% a year under reforms aimed at making the creaking system sustainable.