Venezuela, a decade at the heart of Spanish politics
The indictment of Zapatero further accentuates the division of Madrid politicians on ties with the South American country
BarcelonaThe surprising indictment of former Spanish President José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero for a crime of influence peddling in relation to the rescue of the airline Plus Ultra, at the center of an international money laundering investigation with its hub in Venezuela, has placed the media spotlight on Zapatero's activities in this South American country. However, Venezuela and its relations with its regime have been a recurring source of accusations, controversies, and even judicial proceedings within a highly tense and litigious Spanish politics for over a decade.
this year Zapatero had already traveled twice to Caracas to supervise the amnesty decreed by President Delcy RodríguezTherefore, as soon as the scandal broke, the microphones sought the reactions of the Venezuelan opposition, led by María Corina Machado. "What is emerging here is what we have been denouncing for years. But the most painful thing is that, beyond enriching themselves, they also subjected Venezuelans to persecution," declared Dignora Hernández, political secretary of Vine Venezuela, Machado's movement, who pointed out that the true link between Zapatero and the Venezuelan ruling elite is "business and money."
However, not all opposition agrees. According to Alberto Pérez, a Venezuelan dissident exiled in Madrid and president of the NGO Venezolanos en España, the reality is quite the opposite. “My feeling regarding Zapatero is one of gratitude because his mediation, which was not the only one, helped in the release of many Venezuelan opposition members. I have discussed this with other colleagues these days, and I believe this is the majority opinion,” states Pérez, who points out that the socialist politician's mediation in Venezuela had bipartisan support at its inception. "Zapatero went to Venezuela as a special envoy of the European Union and the Rajoy government, and he had the support of both major parties."
Machado's bloc's position on this matter could be motivated by her political alliance with the Spanish right, for ideological or political interest reasons. In fact, Machado has been invited to PP events and received the Gold Medal of the Community of Madrid from Isabel Díaz Ayuso. Furthermore, the Venezuelan politician has also met with Santiago Abascal, but has rejected all invitations to meet with the president, Pedro Sánchez, at Moncloa.
Ties with the left
According to Lluís Orriols, professor of political science at Universidad Carlos III, it is not common for a foreign country to acquire such great relevance in domestic politics as Venezuela has. "One of the reasons that explains this is that Venezuela has for a long time been an important political reference for a part of the left, it was a brand of identity, occupying a position that Cuba previously held," comments Orriols, who points out that shortly after the emergence of Podem there was a whole campaign to attack this party for its links with Chavismo.
Specifically, the Spanish justice system even opened two investigations for alleged irregular financing of Podem based on the statements of a former Chavista leader, Hugo Carvajal, and various reports from the UDEF, the unit of the Spanish police specialized in criminal offenses. However, the cases were eventually dismissed due to lack of evidence.
The next scandal related to Venezuela was the so-called Delcygate, following the controversial visit to Madrid in 2020 by Delcy Rodríguez, then vice-president of the South American country. Rodríguez met at Barajas airport with José Luis Ábalos, Minister of Transport, even though a package of EU sanctions against the Venezuelan regime prohibited her entry into the Schengen area. Vox filed a lawsuit, but the Supreme Court dismissed it because it considered the prohibition to be of a political nature. A few months later, the far-right party again turned to the justice system to denounce the bailout of the airline Plus Ultra, although the lawsuit was dismissed in 2023.
The recent reopening of the Plus Ultra case also includes the investigation of other alleged economic activities of Zapatero in Venezuela. In his indictment order, the investigating judge, José Luis Calama, mentions an alleged intermediation by the socialist politician with a Swiss company and another Chinese one in the purchase of Venezuelan oil. "We had no knowledge of Zapatero's economic activities in Venezuela. We will have to see if they are illegal or not," comments Pérez.
