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The visit of the King of Spain to Gernika revives political tension and the debate about the state's apology

The PNV regrets that the King has not apologized and the PSE-EE and the PP reject any intention to link Francoism to the current government or monarchy. EH Bildu has not participated in the acts and has denounced the King as "heir to Francoism".

GERNIKA (BIZKAIA), 28/11/2025.- El rey Felipe VI (d) conversa con el lehendakari Imanol Pradales (i) a su llegada al Museo de la Paz de Gernika, este viernes. EFE/ Luis Tejido

President Imanol Pradales and King Philip VI. Photo: EFE

The visit to Gernika by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and King Philip VI to pay tribute to the victims of the 1937 bombing this Friday provoked intense political reactions in the ACV, based on the demand that the Spanish State and the Monarchy make an apology similar to that of Germany.

The leader of thePNVhas valued the presence of Germany and EH Bilduhas censured the visit of the King of Spain because he is considered the heir of Francoism and therefore "responsible for the bombing". On the other hand, PSE-EEand PPhave refused to link the king to the atrocities committed by the German Condor Legion.

The President of the PNV, Aitor Esteban, has welcomed the gesture made by the German President, whom he had hoped for "long ago", and recalled that Gernika "is not just any symbol" and represents "the atrocities and injustices that have been committed in various parts of the world".

However, Esteban has stressed that the Spanish State and the King himself must have "the same gesture of apology" as Germany for the bombing. The PNV leader has argued that although the German President and the government have nothing to do with Nazi Germany, the Spanish Head of State was established after a transition and the monarchy was "put by the Franco regime".

For this reason, Esteban has stated that he does not understand that the King visits Gernika "and does not make the same gesture of apology."

EH Bildu, for his part, has not participated in any official event and has called for a rally for "memory and anti-fascism."

The member of the abertzale coalition Oskar Matute has stated that King Philip VI is "heir to Francoism" with the PP and Vox and that he is not "welcome to the Basque Country", while recalling that Francoism and Franco are responsible for what happened in Gernika and that their heirs "threaten our freedoms and rights".

For his part, the PSE-EE Secretary General, Eneko Andueza, has said that the Spanish Government of Pedro Sánchez should not apologize. He has denounced that "wanting to spread a thread linking the current progressive government to the dictatorial regime can only be a reflection of a short-sighted look at history carried by short-lived or nil political opportunism."

In the same vein, the President of the Basque PP, Javier de Andrés, has rejected the demands for responsibility addressed to the monarchy and has described it as "manipulation of truth and history" to claim responsibility for the bombing of Philip VI.

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