Rajoy angers France while the Government accuses the PP of torpedoing foreign policy

The Popular Party has already managed to provoke the irritation of the governments of Pedro Sánchez and Emmanuel Macron by blocking last week in the Senate the friendship treaty that both leaders sealed at the Hispano-French summit held in Barcelona on January 19, 2023. And now some controversial words from former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy – in which he pointed out that the French national football team is playing the World Cup, in his opinion, “without French players” – have the effect of throwing a lit match on a barrel of dynamite.

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Rajoy’s comment escalated the political and social controversy even further yesterday, to the point that the Spanish government spokesperson, Elma Saiz, accused the former prime minister of provoking “a small international conflict” and dragging Spain into “a diplomatic mess.” And all this during Sánchez’s visit to Paris, yesterday to participate in the meeting of the coalition of volunteers for Ukraine led by Macron, crowned with an official dinner at the Élysée Palace, and today to attend the military parade on the occasion of the National Day on July 14, just hours before the French and Spanish teams face each other tonight in Dallas in the World Cup semifinals.

Sánchez himself already showed embarrassment the day before over the “xenophobic statements” he attributed to Rajoy, which triggered a chain reaction from French ministers, who labeled them “racist” and “unacceptable.” And yesterday the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Nöel Barrot, was forceful, calling Rajoy’s words “pathetic”: “France has no skin color. Any statement to the contrary is stupidity, racism, or a combination of both.”

His Spanish counterpart, José Manuel Albares, also did not hold back yesterday in attacking the PP’s foreign policy line and asserting that they are “absolutely incapable of governing,” reports Anna Buj from Brussels. Albares demanded that Alberto Núñez Feijóo’s party stop “boycotting” Spanish foreign policy – also in Mexico, Morocco, or Algeria, where Sánchez will travel next Monday – and relations with France. “One thing is not knowing languages, and another is not understanding where the interests and feelings of Spaniards lie,” he warned.

The head of Spanish diplomacy contacted his French counterpart to expressly emphasize that Rajoy does not speak on behalf of Spain, and unsuccessfully demanded that Feijóo “disavow” the former prime minister. “And also that, once and for all, he stops trying to set fire to, boycott, and torpedo Spain’s foreign policy,” he demanded.

The French government spokesperson, Maud Bregeon, in turn called Rajoy’s words “abject,” which “show a great ignorance of the history of France and the pride of the French in their national team.” “It is racism,” she concluded. And her Spanish counterpart, Elma Saiz, agreed in labeling the former prime minister’s statements as “racist and xenophobic.”

The paradox is that even the French far-right of Marine Le Pen disqualified Rajoy’s words about ‘les bleus’ as “racist.” “Rajoy is a racist, his statements are scandalous, shameful, and regrettable, everyone should condemn them,” said Julien Odoul, a deputy in the National Assembly and spokesperson for Le Pen’s ultra party, National Rally.

The Spanish Minister of the Presidency and Justice, Félix Bolaños, also insisted on considering Rajoy’s words “very unfortunate.” And, although he explicitly left the former PP leader aside, he attacked “other people, who unfortunately abound in our country, who are professional haters.” To whom he warned: “Lamine Yamal or Nico Williams are as Spanish as the racist haters who abound on social networks in our country.”

“Probably the story of overcoming, effort, reaching the top in football, represents Spain more than the racist haters who abound on social networks,” emphasized Minister Bolaños.

And he lamented that “no one understands” that the PP is at the same time “torpedoing and boycotting” the friendship and cooperation treaty with France, “our main trading partner, our neighboring and brother country,” by filing a constitutional challenge. “What was once a governing party is today a party that practices institutional and international hooliganism,” denounced Bolaños.

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Numerous PSOE and Sumar ministers also joined yesterday in criticizing Rajoy. The Interior Minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, endorsed the condemnation issued the day before by his French counterpart, Laurent Nuñez – descendant of Spanish migrants – who considered Rajoy’s words “absolutely unacceptable.” He also agreed with the French Foreign Minister in labeling the former prime minister’s statement as “racism or stupidity.” “What a disgrace, I demand that Rajoy come out to apologize, to say sorry,” also unsuccessfully demanded the Minister of Social Rights, Pablo Bustinduy.

Only the Health Minister, Mónica García, saw something positive: “The best campaign for the left is for the right to keep talking,” she encouraged.

The national leadership of the Popular Party, however, wanted yesterday to downplay Rajoy’s words, as they understand that the column in which he wrote them – in the digital medium El Debate – has a “sarcastic” and “harmless” approach.

“We understand that it is one of those columns that Mr. Rajoy writes, which are sarcastic. And they are columns without bad intentions. They are comments in favor of Spain. I would limit it to this perimeter, I would not give it another interpretation,” said the party spokesperson, Borja Sémper, from Génova.

Sémper himself, in this sense, deepened this explanation by saying that it is an “obvious” and “common sense” that, “if you were not French, you could not play on the French national team, just as you cannot play on any national team if you are not a national of that country.”

Likewise, Sémper wanted to counterattack the government for Sánchez’s words in response to Rajoy, saying “may the best win” the World Cup. Sémper pointed out that what differentiates the PP from Sánchez is that “the Prime Minister has said or stated that he wants the best to win.” “We want Spain to win,” he stressed.

But Vox also stepped in amid the controversy distancing itself from Rajoy. The spokesperson in the Parliament, Joan Garriga, referred to the Spanish national team, pointing out that regarding “doubts about the nationality of some footballers, the reality is very clear: those who play with Spain, today, are Spanish.”

Garriga thus considered that at a time when “all of Spain is united” supporting the national team, it is not the time to seek divisive debates. The far-right party has not changed its perspective on migration policy and recalled its commitment to toughen the conditions to obtain nationality. But regarding the nationality of the players, it did not sow doubts and also “demanded” that they “defend it with the pride it deserves, because they represent all Spaniards.”