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King Felipe VI's comments on the conquest of America','headline':'Spanish government and Mexico endorse King Felipe VI's recognition of conquest abuses','lead':'Spain\'s government gave 100% backing to King Felipe VI\'s acknowledgment of \'much abuse\' during the conquest of America, while Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum praised it as a gesture of rapprochement. Reactions also highlighted domestic political divides and hopes for strengthened ties.','content':'Following King Felipe VI\'s Monday statement at Madrid\'s National Archaeological Museum—during a visit with Mexican Ambassador Quirino Ordaz Coppel to the exhibition \'La mujer en el México indígena\' (running until March 22 as part of a Spain-Mexico cultural project)—where he noted that such events \'cannot make us feel proud\' by today\'s values but require objective historical context, responses emerged swiftly.
Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares had previously recognized \'pain and injustice\' toward Mexican indigenous peoples, deeming it \'fair to recognize and lament.\' On Tuesday, March 17, government spokeswoman Elma Saiz endorsed the king\'s words \'100 percent,\' confirming prior consultation and expressing hope for a top-level Ibero-American Summit in Madrid in November.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum welcomed the remarks in her press conference as a \'gesture of rapprochement,\' acknowledging historical \'excesses and extermination\' and urging continued dialogue. She contrasted it with former President AMLO\'s unanswered 2019 letter requesting an apology, noting she did not invite the king to her October 2024 inauguration and Spain sent no representative—yet emphasized advancing relations. Sheinbaum also praised Mesoamerican cultures, citing the Maya invention of zero and advances in cosmology and medicine.
Opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo (PP) countered by expressing pride in Spain\'s legacy of linguistic and cultural unity, calling 15th-century scrutiny a \'disaster.\' Saiz rebuked him for \'denying history\' and adopting \'ultra-denialist positions.\'
Spanish government endorses King Felipe VI's acknowledgment of conquest abuses
