While Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez insisted on the issue in Finland and will do so in Luxembourg, also with the European Investment Bank (EIB), in Madrid, Sumar and its left-wing parliamentary partners expressed their rejection.
Except as expected, the Socialist legislators of the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party), Sánchez’s idea of increasing defense spending to two percent of GDP before the planned date of 2029 failed to find support in the Congress of Deputies.
Not even the hope that existed after Sánchez’s conversation yesterday with Yolanda Díaz, the second vice president of the government and Sumar figure, bore fruit.
All of this is on the eve of the president’s round of talks at Moncloa Palace with all political groups, with the exception of the far-right Vox party.
The government’s efforts to increase defense budgets and actively participate in European rearmament, with a focus on Ukraine in its war with Russia, were underscored this Wednesday by Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, who called for unity and responsibility from all.
His appearance in the plenary session of the Congress of Deputies was met with rejection from Sumar and other left-wing parliamentarians, while the conservative Popular Party (PP) did not take a position, and Vox launched all kinds of criticism at the government.
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