Spain’s International Isolation

Franco's supposed - but actually pro-German - neutrality during World War II became problematic for him toward the end of the conflict. To mitigate its effects, in 1944—and more intensely in 1945— the Caudillo's propaganda began asserting that Spain had attempted to contribute to peace in Europe. This campaign was quite successful within the country, where perhaps a majority of the population—traumatized by the civil war, hungry, and uninformed—wanted to believe that Franco was a wise and prudent ruler who had kept the country out of the conflict. 

However, in Allied governments and much of Western public opinion, the perception was very different. This cartoon, “Franco’s closet”, which was published in the Dallas Morning News on 5 August 1945, is one example.

The subsequent near-total international isolation of Spain was determined by three factors: the British and American desire to remove Franco from power without triggering a revolution in Spain; pressure from the press and public opinion against the Spanish dictator; and Stalin's ultimately limited interest in fostering discord on the Iberian Peninsula, that is, in the Allies' backyard.

Spain was excluded from the United Nations when it was founded in October 1945, and debates regarding what to do with the country soon began within the organization. In February 1946, France closed its border with Spain in protest over the execution of twelve guerrilla fighters, including Cristino García, a hero of the anti-Nazi resistance. The following month, the United States, France, and the United Kingdom issued a tripartite declaration denouncing Francoism and calling on Spaniards to replace his regime with a democratic one. This effectively meant they would take no action to overthrow Franco. In December, Soviet pressure led to a UN declaration labeling Spain a threat to peace and calling for the withdrawal of accredited ambassadors from Madrid. However, the Vatican, Ireland, and several Latin American and Arab countries refused to comply.

For many Spaniards, the UN declaration was an affront and an unacceptable intrusion into their internal affairs. They also believed it encouraged a second round of civil war, something most of the population viewed with horror. The regime took advantage of this genuine sentiment to organize large demonstrations in support of Franco, culminating in a massive gathering of several hundred thousand people in Madrid's Plaza de Oriente on December 9.

International condemnation strengthened the regime internally, although the consequences were disastrous for the country's economy and the daily lives of Spaniards. Western public opinion pressure made it impossible for Spain to benefit from the Marshall Plan (1948) or to join NATO (1949). However, starting in 1947, as the realities of the Cold War took hold, ambassadors began to return to Madrid. Franco started receiving economic aid from the United States, which soon began negotiating the establishment of military bases in the country. This rapprochement between Spain and the United States was formalized with the Madrid Pacts in September 1953. Spain was admitted into the UN two years later.