Editing Foreign relations of Spain (section)

=== Latin America ===

==== The Ibero-American vision ====
Spain has maintained its special identification with its fellow Spanish-speaking countries. Its policy emphasizes the concept of an [[Ibero-American]] community, essentially the renewal of the historically liberal concept of "[[Hispanoamericanism|Hispano-Americanismo]]" (or Hispanic as it is often referred to in English), which has sought to link the [[Iberian Peninsula|Iberian peninsula]] to the [[Hispanic America|Spanish-speaking countries in Central and South America]] through language, commerce, history and culture. Spain has been an effective example of transition from dictatorship to democracy, as shown in the many trips that Spain's King and prime ministers have made to the region.<ref>Richard Youngs, "Spain, Latin America and Europe: the complex interaction of regionalism and cultural identification." ''Mediterranean Politics'' 5.2 (2000): 107–128.</ref>

==== Trends in diplomatic relations ====
Spain maintains economic and technical cooperation programs and cultural exchanges with Latin American countries, both bilaterally and within the EU. During [[José María Aznar]]'s government, Spanish relations worsened with countries like Mexico, Venezuela and Cuba, but were exceptionally good with others, like Colombia, the Dominican Republic and several [[Central America]]n republics. [[José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero]]'s victory in the 2004 general elections changed this setting. Despite long-standing close linguistic, economic and cultural relations with most of Latin America, some aspects of Spanish foreign policy during this time, such as its support for the Iraq War, were not supported or widely favored.