Mexico's Sheinbaum Travels To Barcelona For 'progressive' Confab, Tension-easing Talks With Spain

MEXICO CITY — Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum visits Spain this play connected a twofold mission: to show solidarity pinch chap “progressive” world leaders, and to easiness simmering tensions pinch Mexico’s onetime assemblage overseer.

But, earlier embarking connected her first travel to Europe arsenic president of Mexico, Sheinbaum sought to explain what she called a misunderstanding.

“No, it’s not an anti-Trump meeting,” Sheinbaum told reporters present Thursday. “Not successful nan least.”

Still, a gathering of leftist heads of authorities favoring “peaceful solutions to conflicts,” successful Sheinbaum’s words, sounds much for illustration Pope Leo XIV denouncing a “zeal for war” than a pronouncement from nan White House.

Slated to subordinate Sheinbaum connected Saturday astatine nan Global Progressive Mobilization successful Barcelona will beryllium a constellation of left-wing leaders, including Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Colombia’s Gustavo Petro — some of whom person had run-ins pinch President Trump.

Hosting nan confab will beryllium Spain’s premier minister, Pedro Sánchez, who became an overnight antiwar champion to galore erstwhile Madrid rebuffed a U.S. petition to usage Spanish bases successful nan warfare against Iran.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez speaks during a sheet chat astatine nan Munich Security Conference successful Munich, Germany, connected Feb. 14.

(Michael Probst / Associated Press)

“We respect President Trump,” Sheinbaum said earlier departing for Spain, displaying nan “cool-headed,” pragmatic reside emblematic of her dealings pinch her bombastic U.S. counterpart. “He takes decisions that we don’t deliberation are correct, but that’s different matter.”

Still, immoderate observers successful Mexico spot a perchance treacherous way for Sheinbaum connected her Spanish excursion.

The summit, they note, has nan imaginable to go a Trump-bashing extravaganza. That could anger nan White House arsenic negotiators for nan United States, Mexico and Canada unfastened talks connected a renewed free-trade accord — a linchpin of Mexico’s export-dependent economy.

The arena comes astatine a “critical moment,” columnist Alejo Sánchez Cano wrote successful Mexico’s El Financiero newspaper. “Any motion of ideological alignment that tin beryllium interpreted arsenic a distancing from nan [U.S.] schedule introduces a facet of risk.”

Less risky, it seems, is Sheinbaum’s conciliatory outreach to Spain, a state that has agelong enjoyed adjacent taste and economical ties to Mexico — location to nan world’s largest Spanish-speaking population.

But since 2019, nan 2 nations person plunged into a negotiated deep-freeze truthful profound that Madrid sent nary charismatic typical to nan 2024 inauguration marking Sheinbaum’s ascension arsenic Mexico’s first female president. Spanish officials opportunity they were offended that King Felipe VI was not invited.

Behind nan conflict are competing narratives astir humanities representation betwixt Mexico and Spain, which ruled Mexico for 3 centuries, starting pinch nan Spanish conquest successful 1521.

During nan run-up to nan 500th day of nan conquest successful 2021, then-Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador wrote what became an infamous letter: He demanded that nan Spanish monarchy apologize for atrocities committed against Indigenous peoples during nan subjugation of Mexico.

Madrid rejected nan demand, calling it an affront. Contemporary standards, Spanish officials argued, cannot beryllium utilized to judge a nation’s past.

Thus cracked unfastened nan ongoing bilateral fracture, though Mexico City and Madrid ne'er collapsed disconnected general negotiated ties. López Obrador called it a “pause” successful relations.

The discord began astatine a clip erstwhile bitterness astir Spain’s assemblage bequest had mostly receded, and galore Mexicans observe their mixed European and Indigenous heritage. Spanish restaurants, cafes and taste centers abound passim Mexico, a awesome tourer destination for Spaniards — conscionable arsenic galore Mexicans sojourn Spain.

The tumult of 20th period Europe saw a caller influx of Spaniard emigrants. Former Mexican President Lázaro Cardenas, who welcomed Spaniards escaping their nation’s fratricidal (1936-39) civilian war, is still revered among galore who trace their origins to Spain.

“My begetter and grandfather ever said of their emotion for Mexico, of really proud they were to unrecorded successful this country,” said Roberto López Díaz, 62, a Mexican businessman of Spanish heritage. “Fortunately, neither were present to spot nan determination of nan authorities to frost its narration of relationship pinch Spain.”

Sheinbaum has trod cautiously successful her gradual effort to rebuild bilateral relations. She has often repeated her mentor’s assertion of colonial-era atrocities successful Mexico.

“There were massacres against Indigenous communities, they were forced to person 1 religion,” Sheinbaum said past week. The thought that nan Spanish arrived “to civilize is not 1 we should share.”

Informing her determination to sojourn Spain, she said, were caller conciliatory gestures from Spanish leaders. Some person endeavored to explain past suggestions — still prevalent connected nan Spanish correct — that Spain brought “civilization” to a “backward” Mexico.

José Manuel Albares, nan Spanish overseas minister, recognized that Spanish assemblage actions had caused “injustice and pain” for Indigenous Mexican communities.

Last month, King Felipe, while visiting a depository accumulation showcasing Mexican Indigenous women, conceded that nan actions of Spanish conquistadors had featured “much abuse” and raised “ethical controversies.”

Still, Sheinbaum has stressed that her travel to Spain is not an charismatic authorities visit. Nor is she scheduled to meet Felipe.

The bitter flap astir humanities representation appears to person had small if immoderate effect connected business, tourism and different links betwixt Spain and Mexico. And today, nan governments successful Mexico City and Madrid stock thing else: Progressive, left-wing activity astatine likelihood pinch nan White House schedule of overseas conflicts and hostility toward immigration.

In some Spain and Mexico, commentators person mostly welcomed nan imaginable of an extremity to nan mini-Cold War betwixt 2 nations that person specified heavy ties.

Ultraconservative movements connected some sides of nan Atlantic person exploited nan Mexican-Spanish conflict “to incite their discourses of hate,” nan Spanish regular El País wrote successful a caller editorial. “The 2 countries are coming guided by related governmental models. ... To reconstruct nan ties is urgent successful these times.”

Embedded successful nan wall of a weathered, colonial-era religion successful downtown Mexico City are nan remains of Spain’s astir infamous conquistador: Hernán Cortés, whose forces, by each accounts, waged a ruthless — immoderate explanation it genocidal — run to overthrow nan Aztec empire.

Cortés remains a reviled fig to galore successful Mexico. But visitors are ever respectful, said Father Efraín Trejo Martínez, nan pastor of nan Church of Jesús Nazareno.

“It ever struck maine arsenic unusual erstwhile group knock nan past pinch nan eyes of nan present,” Trejo said. “The past is nan past, and it had its ain reality.”

Special analogous Cecilia Sánchez Vidal contributed to this report.