The leader of the Spanish Popular Party (PP) Mariano Rajoy said he would "never" accept that Caracas labels Spanish Head of Government as "a strategic ally" of Hugo Chávez' Venezuela, as "this puts Rodríguez Zapatero at the same level as countries such as Cuba or Zimbabwe."

"I do not care if the Spanish socialism lets this happen. I will not. My duty is to refuse to see Spain mistaken by one of the members of this club of enemies of freedom I just mentioned," Rajoy said in a forum on Latin American relations hosted by Fundación Euroamérica and newspaper ABC, as quoted by Europa Press.