Las Comunidades Europeas frente al franquismo: problemas políticos suscitados por la solicitud española de negociaciones de 1962

Abstract

In February 1962, the government of Francoist Spain followed Britain and other European countries’ initiative by sending a request of negotiations to the EEC. For the first time, the EEC had to deal with a request coming from a dictatorial regime. The Spanish request opened subsequently a debate about the political terms of association to the EEC, which was to be developed in a somewhat discrete way as the Communities were facing at the time more pressing issues. The outcome of this was the Preferential Agreement signed with Spain in 1970, a sort of midway solution, but such a debate set up however a precedent in EEC’s relations with third countries.