From Cárdenas to Echeverría: The 12 Points of Mexican Foreign Policy Toward Franco’s Spain (1936-1975)

Abstract

In September 1975, with the news emerging of five executions by firing squad in Spain, Luis Echeverría was suddenly thrust onto the international stage, driven by his intention to bring about the fall of the Francoist dictatorship. To achieve this goal, the Mexican president set in motion the coordinated machinery of the post-revolutionary regime, beginning with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and his ambassador to the UN, Alfonso García Robles. Taking into account the details of the historical circumstances, this paper analyzes the discourse of the Mexican Foreign Ministry, and sets out in twelve points the foreign policy of Mexico towards Francoist Spain during forty long years.