Spain does not want to degrade the relationship with Mexico

Daniel Millán, head of the Office of the Secretary of Foreign Relations, Marcelo Ebrard, sent me a message through WhatsApp to indicate that what was published in this column last Friday was not true.

In this space, I published that the Government of Spanish President Pedro Sánchez did not grant ex-governor Quirino Ordaz the placet to arrive in Madrid as ambassador of Mexico.

It is convenient, out of respect for the readers, to detail what I published.

The approval or approval is granted to the person and not to the Government that proposes it. They have relationships with the latter, and there is a business manager whose appointment does not go through the approval of the government of the country to which he arrives, that is, it is an unappealable decision.

Diplomatic codes are so respectful that one of them consists of not denying an approval, it is simply not issued, it is not answered.

In this sense, Daniel Millán is right. The Spanish Government did not deny approval to Mr. Quirino Ordáz, it simply did not issue it. On September 11, that is, 108 days ago, President López Obrador made public his decision to send the former PRI governor to Spain.

Before making public the name of a person who has been designated as ambassador, the diplomatic step is to have previously informed the Government of the country to which he is supposed to arrive. Did President López Obrador do it?

On December 3, I received information from a diplomatic source about “some problems” to grant the placet to former Governor Ordaz. Far from Mexico, but close to the case, the source told me that granting Quirino approval would be to accept the degradation of the diplomatic relationship between the two countries.

The intense campaign of President López Obrador against Spain during dozens of press conferences has ended up eroding certain historical ties.

On Thursday afternoon, another source told me the same thing about the case.

At that same moment I got in touch with the communication counselor of the Spanish Embassy in Mexico, Fernando Hernández Cobo. On a trip to Spain, Fernando answered me on Friday at 4:51 pm Madrid time: “There is nothing new with this topic, Fausto. The request is in process, but there is nothing more ”.

Nor will there be.

The time to grant approval has an average ceiling of two months. There are several arguments on the critical path to follow: it has to be analyzed by various departments in the foreign ministries, other ministries, even.

There are no diplomatic elements for the Government of Spain to grant Ordaz the approval. Spain does not want to degrade the relationship with Mexico, despite what happened in dozens of press conferences.

Consultant, academic, editor

Globali … what?

He was a research professor in ITAM’s Department of International Studies, published the book Referendum Twitter and was editor and contributor to various newspapers such as 24 Horas, El Universal, Milenio. He has published in magazines such as Foreign Affairs, Le Monde Diplomatique, Life & Style, Chilango and Revuelta. He is currently an editor and columnist for El Economista.