This Wednesday, May 28th, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will meet in Brussels with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Although at first glance, this might seem like just another meeting on the European institutional agenda, it is loaded with latent tensions that affect both Spanish domestic politics and the fragile European balance.
The war in Ukraine and disputes over migration policy have stirred the pot in Brussels, but if we were to name an issue that has clearly exposed the rift among member states, it is the positioning regarding Palestine and Israel. And Sánchez has chosen to champion the Palestinian cause, seeking recognition of a Palestinian state as a matter of moral and diplomatic urgency.
The socialist president arrives in the European capital with an increasingly heavy domestic burden. Pressure from his separatist allies is unrelenting. One of his most controversial commitments has been the push for Catalan, Basque, and Galician to be recognized as official languages of the European Union.
On Tuesday, the day before Sánchez’ meeting with von der Leyen, the proposal failed to garner the needed unanimous support in the EU’s General Affairs Council and was postponed indefinitely. Not even Sánchez’ promise that Spain would bear all the additional costs of the three new EU languages helped sway opinions.
No one in Brussels seems eager to open the linguistic Pandora’s box. Turning the EU into a sort of Tower of Babel would cause an administrative and economic headache and set a dangerous precedent for other secessionist movements in Europe. Von der Leyen knows this.
Adding to this volatile mix is the controversial amnesty law promoted by the Spanish government for those responsible for the 2017 Catalan secession attempt. Last week, the European Parliament’s Committee on Petitions issued a negative opinion, driven by VOX (Patriots), warning of the risks such a measure poses to the rule of law. Granting political amnesties in exchange for parliamentary support sets a precedent that causes unease in Brussels, even among the social democrats.
Von der Leyen is fully aware that critics could use any sign of leniency toward this process against her. If the Commission looks the other way, what credibility would it have in sanctioning countries like Hungary, or any other, for alleged breaches of democratic order? The case of Romania would be even more flagrant.
Underlying this meeting is also the power dynamic within the European institutions. Despite appearances, the European People’s Party (EPP) and the Socialists & Democrats (S&D) maintain a tacit alliance that ensures power distribution in both the Parliament and the Commission. Ursula von der Leyen, who needs support to cover up scandals such as Pfizergate, knows that Sánchez is a key player in that machinery. Not surprisingly, Spaniard Teresa Ribera, former Minister for Ecological Transition, currently holds the position of First Executive Vice-President of the Commission.
Sánchez, for his part, plays his cards with pragmatism. He needs Europe to shield himself from an increasingly critical domestic public opinion and to camouflage domestic management full of concessions, contradictions, and legal challenges with international relevance.
The meeting between Sánchez and von der Leyen is far from a diplomatic courtesy. It is a full-scale negotiation where personal interests, partisan alliances, and institutional challenges intersect.
