Spain and the Promotion of Governance in Algeria

This article examines the reasons why Spain which possesses a consolidated democratic regime continues to promote democracy and even good governance in certain countries in such an uncertain, ambiguous manner. Recent events, such as the impact of international terrorism, have meant that there is an even more urgent need for providing democratic assistance to the neighbouring countries of the Maghreb region. In spite of its initial limitations and slants,the very concept of governance would represent a non-intrusive promotion of democracy. Nevertheless, Spain’s actors in the field of foreign policy and cooperation with development (as the case of Algeria illustrates perfectly) have been clearly reluctant to commit themselves to this course of action. Spain’s patent energy dependence on Algeria (a fact that is often put forward as the main explanatory reason) is called into question, with an argument based not only on the evidence of Spanish action in other countries in regions (such as Tunisia and Latin America), but also in an analysis of the discourses and instruments of Spanish foreign policy. As an alternative explanation, it is suggested that practices that have long been used in Spain’s “Arab” foreign policy, the pending reform of the external service, the Europeisation of external action and the “second-player syndrome” (i.e. second to France), provide a better explanation ofSpain’s ambiguousness and of its slow abandonment of policies that favour the status quo