The right wing has Zapatero in its sights

MadridFrom the start of this legislative session, the right wing has been working hard to put José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero in the spotlight. In recent days, the situation has intensified, and the former Spanish president has once again become a target for the People's Party (PP) and Vox. The PP leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has presented him as the "symbol of the decline" of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE); the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, has dubbed him "the scapegoat in every situation"; and the leader of Vox, Santiago Abascal, has demanded that he give explanations in court. Zapatero is the main leader of the old guard of the PSOE who staunchly supports Pedro Sánchez—a month ago he boasted of having had a "long coffee" with the Spanish president and asserted that he "is strong and convinced"—and he has also emerged as a key figure in critical moments of this legislative session. In fact, Zapatero has also been the PSOE's firefighter in the most difficult situations with Junts: he has been the most important link Sánchez has had a relationship with former president Carles Puigdemont since 2023, with whom he has even forged a "relationship of trust"

Why is the right wing targeting him again now? They're pointing the finger at him because of his alleged connection to Plus Ultra, an airline that was bailed out by the Spanish government in 2021 with 53 million euros in a controversial operation due to its supposed links with Venezuela and doubts about whether it was truly a strategic company eligible for such an injection of public funds. And now he's the subject of a judicial investigation into whether the bailout was used for money laundering. Last week, the Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF) of the National Police arrested the owner, Julio Martínez Sola, and the CEO, Roberto Rossellini, and the judge banned them from leaving the country.

And what is Zapatero's connection to the arrests? The PP and Vox parties have seized upon several reports that cast doubt on the former Spanish president. One of them, The Debate:This online publication, aligned with the hardline wing of the PP and Vox parties, reported that Zapatero and Martínez met 72 hours before the airline executive's arrest in Monte del Pardo, Madrid's largest Mediterranean forest, in a location with no cell phone coverage. The Confidential He added that Martínez had deleted content from his mobile phones and had erased emails. "We have seen published that he warned"Those under investigation were pressured to erase evidence, and it's necessary to know if this is true," Feijóo proclaimed. "What are they covering up? How dare they? What nerve!" Abascal lamented.

As a result, the Popular Party will summon Zapatero in the Koldo case commission The Senate believes—in the words of Alicia García, spokesperson in the Senate—that he "could be implicated in the web of corruption surrounding Sánchez" and that he was the one "pulling the strings" as a "mediator, advocate, and privileged interlocutor with the dictatorial regime" of Nicolás Maduro, the president of Venezuela. Her counterpart in Congress, Ester Muñoz, considers that Zapatero wields a "nefarious influence" in the Moncloa Palace and is the only one "above" Sánchez. However, these accusations have been denied by sources close to the former Spanish president: "It is slanderous to suggest that he warned him of the arrest, which was a great surprise to him," replied sources close to Zapatero. Eldiario.esThe same voices framed it as a "usual" meeting of two "friends" who often go running.

The "pressures" to rescue Plus Ultra

However, it was José Luis Ábalos who broke the story on the Plus Ultra issue in an interview he gave to OK Daily Before entering prison (published in installments). In the conversation, Ábalos, just as he had done in the days leading up to his imprisonment, launched a scathing attack on Moncloa and the PSOE without restraint. As a result, some sectors interpret this as him beginning to spill the beans. "Zapatero pressured me to facilitate the Plus Ultra bailout," stated the then Minister of Transport.

This account has been corroborated—without evidence—by one of the key figures in the legal siege against Sánchez: businessman Víctor de Aldama. He is the one who has dedicated himself to exposing alleged malpractice and dirty laundry of the Spanish government in matters that have ended up in court. And now he has taken advantage of an interview to downplay Ábalos's accusation—both will be tried next year by the Supreme Court for the irregular purchase of masks during the pandemic—placing Zapatero at the heart of the decision-making process for the Plus Ultra bailout. He stated – recalling a conversation in an "adjoining office" – that the former Spanish president "forced" Ábalos to inject public money into the airline: "It's not something I'm asking you to do, it's something the president is asking you to do." Subsequently, Ábalos, "angry and upset" – according to Aldama's account – called Pedro Sánchez, who insisted that he should do "whatever it takes."

However, once again, the PSOE has denied everything. In a brief appearance from Brussels after the European Council meeting, Pedro Sánchez again defended this week the "complete transparency" of the Plus Ultra bailout: "These were loans we granted in accordance with national legislation and all the parameters and requirements established by the Court of Auditors." And he acknowledged that in recent days he has not had "an opportunity" to speak with Zapatero.

Huawei and Venezuela

The People's Party's (PP) obsession with Zapatero is nothing new. In recent months, the PP has attacked the former Spanish president, among other things, over Spanish government contracts with Huawei and the Venezuelan elections that resulted in the recognition of Edmundo González as president-elect. They attribute "economic interests" to China and "undisclosed interests" to Venezuela. However, from their headquarters in Genoa, they promote the idea that Sánchez has continued the roadmap initiated by Zapatero in 2004. Indeed, Miguel Tellado, the PP's secretary general, dubbed the former Spanish president the "founding father of Sanchismo."