By Dave Jamieson
IF THE UK leaves the EU, Spain would seek a special relationship with the US, according to the country’s Foreign Affairs minister. In a radio interview last Friday, José Manuel García-Margallo said that Spain would have a “golden opportunity” to be the “privileged partner” for the United States in Europe.
He stressed the importance of the so-called Brexit to Spain, adding that if Britain exited from the EU, it would permit an even closer relationship between Madrid and Washington. The two countries are already close with almost a fifth of the US population speaking Spanish and following visits by King Felipe and Queen Letizia, as well as the minister himself, last September.
However, García-Margallo made it clear he does not want the British people to vote to leave. “God forbid,” he said, but warned that if the Leave campaign is successful, it should not be interpreted as the beginning of the “thaw” of the European project.
