Spain’s social PM Pedro Sánchez has described Israel as a “genocidal state”.
He stated that Spain “does not do business with such a country”.
This is his most forceful statement on the matter as of yet.
During a parliamentary Q&A session in Madrid, Pedro Sanchez responded to criticism from Catalan MP Gabriel Rufian, who accused Sánchez of maintaining trade ties with Israel despite the Gaza war.
The aforementioned was his response.
This is the first time Sanchez has publicly used the term “genocidal state”.
Why is that notable?
Because the phrase belongs to and is frequently used by his far-left coalition partner party, Sumar.
Sumar leader and Second Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Diaz has repeatedly accused Israel of genocide and has called for a freeze on trade relations between Spain and Israel.
However, in January 2025 Israel reported having exported goods worth $55.9m and imported $121m worth with Spain. Nevertheless, that is a 40% drop in a year’s time, which is significant.
What’s more, Spain announced its intention to back out of a contract to buy Israeli weapons at the end of April.
Beyond existing trade agreements, this sends a serious message to other countries to both recognize that genocide is going on and to freeze out Israel.
