Balancing between Bangwagoning and Appeasement: Spain´s Foreign Policy towards the US 2001-2011

Abstract

The Spanish-American relations appear to have suffered large swings in a key historical period in our recent times. Regardless of the explanations and interpretations based on ideological affinities, it could make a realistic analysis of the interests of Spain, the enduring inclinations in Spanish foreign policy and the changing structure of international system, rather than an analysis based on the results of these policies and decisions. From a theoretical point of view, the foreign policy behaviour of Spanish governments can be analyzed using two concepts: "Bandwagoning for Profits" and “Appeasement”. Both concepts can be easily recognized in Spanish foreign policy during the last 10 years, both in the relationship with the U.S., as in the general formulation in Spanish foreign policy, both real and perceived