 | |
 Colombia |  Spain |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Embassy of Colombia, Madrid | Embassy of Spain, Bogota |
Colombian-Spain relations are the bilateral relations between theKingdom of Spain and theRepublic of Colombia, formally established in 1881, several decades after Colombia's independence from theSpanish Empire. Both nations are members of theOrganization of Ibero-American States,United Nations, and theWorld Trade Organization.
The territory that became Colombia was first visited byEuropeans when the first expedition ofAlonso de Ojeda arrived at theCabo de la Vela in 1499. TheSpanish made several attempts to settle along the north coast of today's Colombia in the early 16th century, but their first permanent settlement, atSanta Marta, was not established until 1525.Cartagena was founded on June 1, 1533, by Spanish commanderPedro de Heredia, and grew rapidly, fueled first by the gold in the tombs of theSinú culture, and later by trade.
The Spanish advance from inland from the Caribbean coast began independently from three different directions, underJimenéz de Quesáda,Sebastián de Belalcázar andNikolaus Federmann. Although all three were drawn by the Indian treasures, none intended to reachMuisca territory, where they finally met.[1] In August 1538 Quesáda founded Santa Fe deBogotá on the site of Muisca village of Bacatá.
In 1549, the Spanish RoyalAudiencia made Bogotá the capital ofNew Granada, which comprised in large part what is now territory of Colombia. In 1717, theViceroyalty of New Granada was originally created, with Santa Fé de Bogotá as its capital. This Viceroyalty included some other provinces of northwestern South America which had previously been under the jurisdiction of theViceroyalties of New Spain orPeru and correspond mainly to today'sVenezuela,Ecuador andPanama.Bogotá thus became one of the principal administrative centers of the Spanish possessions in theNew World.
A movement initiated byAntonio Nariño, who opposed Spain's centralism and led the opposition against theviceroyalty, leading to the independence ofCartagena in November 1811, and the formation of two independent governments which fought a civil war – a period known asLa Patria Boba. The following year Nariño proclaimed theUnited Provinces of New Granada, headed byCamilo Torres Tenorio. Despite the successes of the rebellion, the emergence of two distinct ideological currents among the liberators (federalism and centralism) gave rise to an internal clash which contributed to the reconquest of territory by the Spanish. The viceroyalty was restored under the command ofJuan de Samano, whose regime punished those who participated in the uprisings. Renewed rebellion, combined with a weakened Spain, made possible a successful rebellion led by the Venezuelan-bornSimón Bolívar, who finally proclaimed independence in 1819. The pro-Spanish resistance was finally defeated in 1822 in the present territory of Colombia and in 1823 in Venezuela.
The territory of the Viceroyalty of New Granada became theRepublic of Colombia organized as a union ofEcuador,Colombia (including modern-dayPanama) andVenezuela. The Congress of Cúcuta in 1821 adopted a constitution for the new Republic, and Simón Bolívar became the firstPresident of Colombia. However, the new republic was unstable and ended with the rupture of Venezuela in 1829 and Ecuador in 1830.
Colombia and Spain officially established diplomatic relations in 1881 when representatives of both nations signed aTreaty of Peace and Friendship inParis.[2] During the years, relations between the two nations decreased as Spain lost its importance in the region, especially after its defeat in theSpanish–American War and Spain's influence in the region diminished.[2]
During theSpanish Civil War, many in Colombia supported theNationalist faction led by GeneralFrancisco Franco against theRepublican faction.[3] During this time, some Spaniards immigrated to Colombia to flee the war. However, they were not large in number relative to the Spanish immigration toArgentina,Mexico andUruguay during the same period. After the war, Colombia maintained diplomatic relations with the Spanish government under General Franco.[3]
In October 1976, Spanish KingJuan Carlos I paid an official visit to Colombia, his first as King of Spain.[4] Since then, the Spanish royal family has paid several visits to Colombia and several Colombian presidents have paid official visits to Spain.
Over the years, both nations have signed agreements and treaties on judicial cooperation, dual nationality, extradition, social security, guarantee of intellectual property, promotion and protection of investments, tourism, avoidance of double taxation and agreement for resident citizens of both nations to vote in local municipal elections.[5]
There are direct flights between both nations withAir Europa,Avianca andIberia.
In 2019, total trade between Colombia and Spain totaled €1.4 billion Euros.[6] Colombia's main exports to Spain include: fish, fruits and vegetables, coffee, sugar, cacao, oil, iron and minerals. Spain's main exports to Colombia include: machinery, electrical equipment, pharmaceutical products and organic chemicals. Spanish multinational companies such asBanco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria,Banco Santander,Mapfre,Telefónica andZara operate in Colombia. In 2011, Colombia signed a free trade agreement with theEuropean Union (which includes Spain).[7]
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