The Evolution Of British Foreign Policy Towards Spain(1945-1955)

It’s no doubt that Spain was a special presence among western countries after World War II.Its autocratic regime was incompatible with western democratic countries at that time,and as a "neutral" country in the Second World War,Spain provided troops and materials to Germany during the war.Therefore,Spain was ostracized by the western countries after World War II.As a member of the Allies,although Britain won the war,it spent too much manpower,material and financial resources in the war,so its international status was much less than before.In this case,in order to maintain its former "great power status",Britain paid special attention to safeguarding national interests when formulating foreign policy after the war,which was embodied in the evolution of Britain’s foreign policy towards Spain in the decade after the war.The evolution of British foreign policy towards Spain in the decade after the war can be roughly divided into three stages.The first was 1945-1947,when British foreign policy towards Spain could be summed up as “mild isolation”.In the early postwar period,western countries excluded and isolated Spain because of the dictatorship of Francisco Franco,among which France and the Soviet Union were the representatives,who advocated breaking off diplomatic relations with Spain and imposing economic sanctions on it.In order to maintain its own trade and economic interests in Spain,Britain strongly opposed the French and Soviet proposals and advocated taking moderate measures to maintain the domestic stability of Spain,So as not to stir up xenophobia and resistance among the Spanish public,so that Franco could gain more support and thus increase the difficulty of overthrowing Franco’s regime.In 1946,the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution forbidding Spain to join the United Nations,and recommended that western countries withdraw their ambassadors in Madrid.Britain supported this resolution,and withdrew its ambassador in Madrid in the same year on the premise of maintaining diplomatic relations with Spain.The second stage is 1947-1950,during which the British foreign policy towards Spain was characterized by “Contact relaxation”.After the outbreak of the Cold War,western countries gradually realized the importance of Spain to the Western camp and began to reduce the exclusion of Spain.Under such circumstances,the United Nations abolished the 1946 resolution on the Question of Spain in 1950,and Britain was forced to consider accepting Spain.The third stage was 1951-1955,at this stage,Britain began to give "policy support" to Spain,and the relationship between Britain and Spain began to normalize.In 1951,the United States began to seek bilateral cooperation with Spain,and in 1953,the two sides signed the Agreement on Mutual Defense Assistance between Spain and the United States,which broke the ice in US-Spanish relations.Under the influence of the " Anglo-American special Relationship",Britain also began to seek cooperation with Spain,and appointed a new ambassador to Madrid in 1951.Subsequently,the ban on the export of arms "common-use" material against Spain was lifted.In 1954,the friction between Britain and Spain in Gibraltar increased,and Britain chose to support Spain to join the United Nations,so as to improve relations with Spain and maintain its dominant position in Gibraltar.Finally,Spain joined the United Nations in 1955,which marked its reintegration into the international community and the normalization of Anglo-Spanish relations.