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Spain Spain and the Soviet Union
Diplomatic relations between Spain and the Soviet Union
were
not formally reestablished until February 1977, although
there
had been extensive trade and cultural contacts between the
two
nations for decades, and Spain had already established
diplomatic
relations with the other Warsaw Pact states. This long
delay was
due in part to Franco's strong anticommunist feelings, but
more
particularly to his bitterness toward the Soviet Union for
its
support of the Republican forces during the Spanish Civil
War.
Anti-Soviet sentiment was not limited to the Francoists in
the
years following that devastating upheaval. Because of the
attempts of the Soviet dictator, Joseph Stalin, to destroy
leftist elements within Spain that were independent of
Moscow,
anti-Francoists as well as Franco's supporters were deeply
distrustful of Moscow
(see The Spanish Civil War
, ch. 1).
Spain's relations with the Soviet Union were also
significantly affected by its relations with the United
States.
From the point of view of the Soviet Union, it was vital
to
maintain a strong position in the Mediterranean in order
to guard
the gateway to the Black Sea and to assure access to the
Atlantic
Ocean through the Strait of Gibraltar. At the same time,
the
United States, wary of Soviet expansionist aims, had
sought to
protect this vital region by the establishment of United
States
bases on Spanish soil. The opposition that subsequently
developed
within Spain to the continued presence of United States
forces
there received encouragement from the Soviet Union.
Nevertheless,
when Moscow delivered a warning to Madrid, referring to
the
"negative consequences" that could ensue if Spain joined
NATO,
Spain's foreign minister curtly remonstrated with the
Soviet
Union for attempting to interfere in Spain's internal
affairs.
Spanish public opinion has generally not shared United
States
fears of a serious Soviet military threat. Spaniards have
favored
increasing trade with the Soviet Union, and they have
welcomed
Moscow's support of Spain's demand for the
"decolonization" of
Gibraltar. In the late 1970s and the 1980s, however, Spain
moved
toward an increasingly independent stance, and this
applied to
its relations with the Soviet Union as well as with the
United
States. Such independence also was reflected in the
efforts of
the PCE to reduce its ties to Moscow
(see Political Parties
, this
ch.). In the mid-1980s, Spain's major difficulty with
regard to
the Soviet Union concerned the extensive espionage
activities
that had been mounted from the large Soviet embassy
installed
after Franco's death and that had led to the expulsion of
several
Soviet diplomats.
Data as of December 1988
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