The winner of Spain's general election, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, said yesterday he intended to withdraw Madrid's 1,300 troops from Iraq.
Zapatero told a Spanish radio station that no decision would be taken until he was in power and without wide political consultation. "But the Spanish troops in Iraq will come home," he added in his first post-election interview with Cadena SER radio.
Spain's opposition Socialists prepared for power yesterday after a sensational election upset sparked by anger over the government's handling of a suspected al-Qaeda attack on commuter trains that killed 200 people.
Voters ousted the center-right Popular Party (PP), which until Thursday's coordinated attacks had looked certain to win a third consecutive term in power in Sunday's poll.
Zapatero, 43, will be Spain's next prime minister. He has criticized outgoing premier Jose Maria Aznar's unswerving support for US foreign policy.
"Spain punishes the PP and places its confidence in Zapatero," said El Mundo newspaper yesterday's front page, slamming the government for attempting to play down evidence of al-Qaeda's involvement in the bombing of four commuter trains.
With US President George W. Bush facing re-election later this year, the unprecedented swing in the Spanish ballot may be closely watched internationally. It was the first time in Spain's modern democratic history that a party had lost power after holding an absolute majority.
With almost all votes counted, the Socialists had won 42.6 percent of the vote to the PP's 37.6 percent as voters turned out in large numbers to reaffirm their faith in democracy amid the upheaval over the bombings which also injured 1,500 people.
With 164 seats in the lower house of parliament, 12 short of those needed for an absolute majority, the Socialists will need to negotiate alliances with smaller regional parties or left-wing allies in order to govern.
But the PP will remain by far the largest single party in the upper house, or Senate, potentially making it difficult for a Socialist government to pass legislation.
The Socialists' surprise win sparked wild rejoicing among their supporters after eight years out of power. "It's like a dream .... Now things are going to change, and change for the better in every sense," said Carlos del Puerto, a 24-year-old mechanic.
Zapatero's first thought after winning was to remember those killed in Thursday's attack and to pledge his immediate priority would be "fighting terrorism."
"Right now, I am thinking about all the lives broken by terror on Thursday," he said, asking a crowd of excited supporters to respect a minute's silence.
Hours before polling began on Sunday, the government revealed it had a videotape, purportedly from Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda, saying it carried out the attacks in retaliation for Spain's support for the US-led war on Iraq.
Protesters shouted "Liar" and "Get our troops out of Iraq" at PP prime ministerial candidate Mariano Rajoy when he voted.
"The government has paid the price for its involvement in the war in Iraq, for Aznar's relationship with Bush and [British Prime Minister] Tony Blair. The vote has been a reaction to this," said Carlos Berzosa, rector of Madrid's Complutense University.
Also See Story:
A quiet man takes over in Madrid
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source