Spain’s Sánchez warns erosion of multilateralism raises risk of planetary annihilation

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has warned that the erosion of multilateralism is multiplying the chances that any crisis will quickly spiral into planetary annihilation. He made the remarks in an op-ed published in today’s edition of the US publication Foreign Affairs.

“At the end of this path lies another world war,” the Socialist leader wrote in the article, which encapsulates his government’s foreign policy views.

Sánchez defended his government’s decision earlier this year to deny Washington the use of Spanish bases in its war against Iran. It “was not an act of hostility toward an ally. Nor was it an expression of neutrality or sympathy for the Iranian regime,” he wrote. Instead, the decision was “a judgement that getting involved would enable escalation.”

He added that “to keep its commitment to peace, Spain had to be willing to say no, even when doing so carried a political cost.”

“Had more countries done the same, the wars in Gaza and Iran would have been far harder and costlier to wage,” the prime minister wrote, holding up the Spanish government he has led since 2018 as an example to be followed.

Sánchez also criticised the war-readiness strategy the European Union has recently endorsed, noting that “even centrist leaders are embracing the language of war preparedness.”

“Although they do not intend to start a war, their words feed a dangerous militaristic mindset,” the prime minister added.

He grounded his opposition to war in decades of Spanish civil society activism against armed conflict, pointing to the ¡No a la guerra! (“No to war!”) protests held when the conservative government of José María Aznar backed the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Sánchez says he took part in those demonstrations himself. “The world cannot afford to ignore them again,” he wrote.

Sánchez was also sceptical of ad hoc solutions such as the Coalition of the Willing, a group of 34 countries that have promised enhanced aid to Ukraine, attributing such initiatives to the ineffectiveness of multilateralism.

Instead, pitching himself as a champion of peace and of small and mid-sized powers, he called for reform of the United Nations.

The op-ed comes as most polls suggest Sánchez is set to lose power after the 29 November snap election, with right-wing and far-right parties expected to win a majority in parliament.