Pedro Sánchez has taken advantage of his presence in Paris to apologize for Mariano Rajoy's words about the French national team. Cameras have captured a brief conversation between the President of the Government and the French Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, during the acts of France's National Day in which Sánchez conveys his discomfort over the controversy.
According to the conversation reported by 'elDiario.es', Sánchez tells Lecornu "I am very ashamed of the words of our former president". 'RTVE' has also broadcast images of the greeting and reproduces a practically identical phrase, uttered while the head of the Spanish Executive shook hands with the French Prime Minister next to Brigitte Macron.
The apology comes hours before the World Cup semi-final between Spain and France and on a day when Sánchez participates as a guest in the official events of July 14. The episode has turned a football column by Rajoy into a political and diplomatic problem after the former president praised the level of the French team, adding that they played "without Frenchmen".
The reference pointed to the racial and family diversity of a team whose footballers hold French nationality and, for the most part, were born in the country. The phrase has been condemned from very different political positions in France, including Marine Le Pen's far-right party, while the Spanish PP maintains that it was a sarcastic comment without ill intent.
The Government demands Rajoy to rectify
The Government spokesperson, Elma Saiz, regretted this Tuesday that Rajoy "has not yet apologized" despite the rejection caused in Spain and France. After the Council of Ministers, she defined his words as "racist and unworthy of a former President of the Government" and stressed that they do not represent Spanish society either.
"Spain is an open, diverse and supportive country", Saiz defended. The minister also recalled that football transmits values of integration and coexistence and asked that the spotlight return to the players before the match between both teams.
José Manuel Albares has also raised his tone. The Minister of Foreign Affairs considers it "very serious" to decide who can belong to a country based on the color of their skin and has warned that such discourses contain "very dangerous" ideas. "We cannot tolerate anything that, neither closely nor remotely, carries within it the poison of racism and xenophobia," he said in an interview on Cadena SER.
Albares has conveyed to his French counterpart that Rajoy's column does not reflect the majority sentiment of Spaniards. The head of diplomacy has described racism and xenophobia as a mixture of hatred and stupidity capable of eroding coexistence, especially when it comes from someone who held the Presidency of the Government.
The French institutional response began with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, who described the words as "stupidity, racism or a combination of both." The Minister of Interior, Laurent Nuñez, considered them "absolutely unacceptable," while Minister Aurore Bergé defended France's pride in a team that reflects the country's diversity.
The PP accuses the Government of "stretching the gum"
Génova has once again protected Rajoy. The parliamentary spokesperson for the PP, Ester Muñoz, has accused the Government of trying to "stretch the gum" to divert attention from other political issues and has insisted that the former president's text had a sarcastic intention.
Muñoz has admitted that any person with French nationality is French, although she has avoided demanding an apology from Rajoy. The PP thus maintains the explanation offered on Monday by Borja Sémper, who reduced the controversy to a phrase formulated "without bad intention."
Rajoy has not rectified either. The former president has maintained that his words were taken out of context and has responded that he does not intend to stoop "to the level of certain members of the Spanish Government."
Rajoy's and the PP's refusal to close the episode contrasts with the apology that Sánchez has conveyed directly to the French Prime Minister during an official visit. The president wanted to separate Spain's position from a column that has provoked criticism from Macron's Government to the French far-right.
Lamine Yamal champions integration
The most direct response from the sports field has come from Lamine Yamal. The Spanish forward, son of a Moroccan father and an Equatorial Guinean mother, has avoided fueling the confrontation and has defended the role of football as a space for coexistence.
"Football, if it serves any purpose, it is to integrate society", he stated before adding that France and Spain represent two good examples of that reality. The player has asked to focus attention on a semifinal that he considers one of the most important and attractive matches that can be played in a World Cup.
Pau Cubarsí has recalled that the members of the French national team are French regardless of their skin color. Borja Iglesias has also claimed the richness that coexistence between people of different origins brings and has asked for greater responsibility from those who intervene in the public debate.
Sánchez and Lecornu held their brief conversation during the official events in Paris. Hours later, the national teams of Spain and France will dispute their place in the World Cup final.
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