Mexico excludes Spanish king from president’s swearing-in

Sheinbaum complained that King Felipe had not replied to a letter about the colonial past – Copyright AFP Patrick T. FALLON

Mexican president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum angered Spain on Wednesday by barring its King Felipe VI from her swearing-in ceremony, accusing him of failing to acknowledge harm caused by his country’s conquest of Mexico five centuries ago.

The decision prompted Spain to boycott the event altogether, with its Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez calling the Mexican decision “inexplicable” and “totally unacceptable”.

Mexico’s outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador in 2019 sent a letter to the king asking that he “publicly and officially” acknowledge the “damage” caused by the 1519-1521 conquest, which resulted in the death of a large part of the country’s pre-Hispanic population.

“Unfortunately, this letter was never replied to directly, as should have been the best practice in bilateral relations,” Sheinbaum said in a statement.

Mexico had in July invited just Sanchez to the swearing-in ceremony on October 1, the statement added.

The Spanish foreign ministry said in a statement that the government “has decided not to participate in the inauguration at any level”.

“Spain and Mexico are brotherly peoples. We cannot therefore accept being excluded like this,” Sanchez said later in a news conference on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

“That is why we have made it known to the Mexican government that there will be no diplomatic representative from the Spanish government, as a sign of protest.”

– Leftist guest list –

Mexico published the guest list a week ago for the inauguration of Sheinbaum, who will be the country’s first woman president following her left-wing ruling party’s landslide June election victory.

King Felipe VI was not on the list, which includes regional leftist leaders as well as US First Lady Jill Biden.

Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles told journalists in Madrid on Wednesday: “The head of state, the king of Spain, always attends all swearing-in ceremonies and therefore we cannot accept that in this case he should be excluded.”

While Mexico and Spain have close historical and economic links, relations between the Latin American nation and its former colonial ruler have been strained since Lopez Obrador — an ally of Sheinbaum — took office in 2018.

He has frequently complained about Spanish companies operating in Mexico and twice declared during his mandate that his country’s relations with Spain were “on pause”.

Madrid has rejected his demand for an apology for the events of the Spanish conquest five centuries ago.

Sanchez said on Wednesday, without elaborating, that Spain had “already explained its position on the subject”.

The socialist premier expressed “great frustration” at Sheinbaum’s decision, saying that he considered Mexico’s leaders to be “progressive” like his government.