What do the German opera master and the most famous British pop band of all time have in common?
A few months ago I was at the National Auditorium singing a part of Wagner’s opera The Mastersingers of NurembergParticipating in the Talía choir is my main hobby in my free time. In it a choir of citizens of said German city sings “Wach auf!” (“Wake up!”), and I thought it was a great message for the current global situation.
And we need to wake up, because the world is totally different to the one I knew when I joined the British diplomatic service. For starters, there is a war on European soil because Putin has decided to send his army to invade one of his neighbors, directly threatening the security of our continent. I want to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the Ukrainian people, who have resisted this barbaric invasion for almost four years.
The President of the United States has made clear his firm intention to focus on the strategic and economic interests of his country. Global economic power has been transformed. In 2004, the EU accounted for 21% of global GDP and China 5%. Twenty years later, the EU is at 17.4% while China is close to 20%. It is the second largest economy in the world and its military is the largest. We need to engage with China on issues such as climate change, health or scientific research, but also where this poses a threat to security, such as support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Today’s world is multipolar, with increased strategic use of economic power and regional conflicts with serious consequences, such as in Gaza.
Added to this geopolitical panorama are various phenomena that are long-term vectors. For example, migration and the technological revolution, but also climate change – the extreme conditions we suffer from in Spain, with the terrible fires this summer or the devastating damage a year ago.
And this is where the Beatles appear. How do we deal with this landscape? “Come together”sang the Fab Four. We work together, Spain and the UK, the UK and other European democracies, much more.
Spain and the United Kingdom are two allied European democracies, two parliamentary monarchies. Well, it had been seven years since our prime ministers had an official bilateral meeting at their respective residences. That is why it is so important that Keir Starmer and Pedro Sánchez met in Downing Street in September and sealed the meeting with a cooperation agreement that confirms the desire of both governments to further our ties.
We start from a very solid base. Nearly a million Spaniards and Britons live in our respective countries. Eighteen million visits from the UK contribute 1.4% to Spain’s GDP. Spanish products and companies are household names in many British homes. The UK is the world’s second largest destination for Spanish investment and the fourth largest investor in Spain. Police cooperation enabled the arrest of British fugitives trying to hide in Spain and the seizure of millions of cigarettes and tons of drugs.
So what else can we do?
— Strengthen our defense cooperation, as we have seen this year at the operational level with the participation of the Spanish frigate Mendez Nunez on the deployment of the British aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales; at a strategic level, with the visit of the Chief of Staff of the Spanish Army to London a couple of months ago; and at an industrial level, with the acquisition by Navantia UK of the British shipyard Harland and Wolff.
— Promote climate ambitions in global forums such as COP30, which starts this week, while accelerating the decarbonisation of our economies with more clean energy that also supports our energy security and competitiveness.
— Creating more jobs for our citizens and more opportunities for our businesses thanks to new agreements between the United Kingdom and the European Union in various sectors: across our defense industries, in agri-food products and in energy networks.
And Gibraltar? The United Kingdom, Spain, Gibraltar and the European Commission have already taken the most difficult step in June, reaching a political agreement. It remains to be expressed in a legal text between the United Kingdom and the European Union, ratified and implemented. We hope that in a few months, citizens on both sides of the border will be able to enjoy the stability, trust and legal security of this new situation that promotes shared prosperity.
Together, we can turn global challenges into opportunities to build a more just and secure future for Spaniards and Britons. Because while the teachers sing, let’s wake up, the day is coming. And let’s work more together, right now.
