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Europe Today: Sánchez dealt blow in Andalusia elections — what now for Spain and Brussels?
Pedro Sánchez is facing fresh political pressure after his Socialist Party lost regional elections in Andalusia. The result is being closely watched in Madrid and Brussels, with the conservative People’s Party expected to rely on far-right support to govern.
READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/05/18/europe-today-sanchez-dealt-blow-in-andalusia-elections-what-now-for-spain-and-brussels
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Pedro Sánchez is facing fresh political pressure after his Socialist Party lost regional elections in Andalusia. The result is being closely watched in Madrid and Brussels, with the conservative People’s Party expected to rely on far-right support to govern.
READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/05/18/europe-today-sanchez-dealt-blow-in-andalusia-elections-what-now-for-spain-and-brussels
Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages
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NewsTranscript
00:14Good morning, it is Monday the 18th of May. I'm Maeve Magamahan and this is Europe Today.
00:21Your daily date with Brussels news and beyond. Thanks for joining us.
00:25Coming up in one of the worst attacks on Russian soil since the start of the full-scale invasion of
00:31Ukraine,
00:32a Ukrainian drone has struck Moscow, killing four people and injuring dozens.
00:37Zelensky says the strikes were, quote,
00:39entirely justified in response to Russia's ongoing attacks on Ukraine.
00:43We'll bring you up to speed on a conflict with no end in sight.
00:47And the World Health Organization has declared a global health emergency over an Ebola outbreak
00:53that has killed more than 80 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
00:57It comes as the UN agency gathers in Geneva to finalise a treaty aimed at protecting the world from pandemic
01:04threats.
01:05Meanwhile, 10 years since the UK voted to leave the European Union, Brexit is back.
01:11Since the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, stepped down and said he would actually like to lead the country
01:15and bring it back to Brussels, there's a national debate sparking.
01:20But first, our top story, which takes us to Andalucía in southern Spain,
01:24where Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's Socialist Party suffered a bruising defeat in regional elections.
01:30The votes are, of course, being closely washed both in Madrid and Brussels.
01:34Now, the Conservative People's Party did win the election,
01:36but they'll still need the support of the far-right Vox Party in order to govern.
01:41For more on what this all means for Spain and for Brussels,
01:45our European leader, Maria Giseo, is here with us this morning.
01:47So, Maria, really bad night there for Pedro Sánchez and his party.
01:50What are the consequences of all this?
01:52Well, look, Maeve, it was a disastrous night.
01:55No question for the Spanish Socialist Party.
01:58It is their worst result in democratic history in a region which is roughly the size of Portugal,
02:03but also used to be their historic stronghold.
02:07Again, back-to-back losses this election, but also four years ago,
02:12which again cement this idea that this is a region that has now shifted to the right.
02:17For Pedro Sánchez, this is also a problem because the candidate running,
02:22representing the party, was someone who was a minister in his government,
02:26a former deputy prime minister of the government of Spain,
02:29and a woman, a candidate that he had selected for this campaign.
02:34So, he was very much appointed with the consent of the prime minister,
02:38already with a national profile.
02:39And all of this we see in the end produce no results in the election.
02:45The other point that is relevant about this vote yesterday is the Spanish conservatives,
02:50very mainstream, Partido Popular, PP,
02:52they did win the election but fell short of a majority
02:55and now will need the hard right Vox to govern.
02:59What this says to me, and I know this is going to sound counterintuitive at this point,
03:02but it really shows that there is a pivot to the right in Spain,
03:07which does not seem obvious, of course,
03:09because the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez,
03:12has created this international profile for himself.
03:14He passed position very successfully, I would argue,
03:17from a communications perspective,
03:19as the man that will stand up to President Donald Trump.
03:22We talked about this big convention that he hosted three weeks ago in Barcelona.
03:27He's been able to really electrify this international progressive coalition.
03:31But back home, there is a big gap between his international perception
03:35and the national perception in the country,
03:38which is of a man who is polarizing, to say the least,
03:43and who also, when you look at the regional ballots so far this year,
03:48you have seen this perpetuation of the right winning for the Spanish prime minister.
03:53Of course, the big question is whether or not he can change the situation going into the 2027 election.
03:58He does stand to perform better nationally than regionally.
04:03But nonetheless, when you put all of this together,
04:05it does suggest that the country is tilting to the right,
04:09contrary to this international image of Spain,
04:12which for me is a fascinating phenomenon,
04:15but it does show there is this big gap externally and within the country.
04:19And there's another pickle, of course,
04:20the Spanish government is in damage control, Maria,
04:23over claims they used EU funding for pensions.
04:25Tell us more.
04:26Well, yes.
04:27Look, Maeve, this goes back to a report by the Spanish Budget Watchdog.
04:32They indicated that in November 2024,
04:35they used budget credits,
04:36which is not necessarily European funding per se,
04:40but it was connected to a clause in relation to the RFF,
04:44which, of course, is the recovery fund put together by the European Union,
04:48paid for, of course, by joint debt,
04:50backed by the EU 27.
04:52The Spanish government told Euronews,
04:54and they told myself as sources very close to the Spanish economy ministry,
04:57that they categorically deny that European money is being used to pay for pensions.
05:02They say this is not the case.
05:04They also told me,
05:05and as I understand,
05:06the European Commission did ask for an explanation.
05:08They did ask for a clarification after Spain provided a technical explanation,
05:13saying this is an accounting issue.
05:14The Commission does not indicate that there is any wrongdoing or misuse of funding,
05:19but nonetheless, this is the politics,
05:21and this is about the optics.
05:22The damage, to some extent, is already done,
05:24and, Maeve, we should keep in mind,
05:26this is coming right before negotiations around the European budget kickstart,
05:31and, of course, it's already fueling some of the tensions
05:33between the Southern European countries and some of the frugal countries,
05:37Northern European countries,
05:38which traditionally, historically, have said they do not want a big budget,
05:41and they do not want joint funding to become permanent.
05:45That debate that never goes away.
05:46Maria Steyo, thank you so much for that very comprehensive analysis there.
05:49And now moving on to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
05:52This weekend, in response to a major attack on Kyiv,
05:56Ukraine's largest drone strike so far hit Russia,
05:58killing at least four people,
06:00including three near Moscow and wounding a dozen others.
06:04Debris fell on Russia's largest airport,
06:06causing disruptions, but no damage.
06:08For more, we're joined here in the studio by our Ukraine correspondent,
06:11that's, of course, Sasha Vakilina.
06:13Tell us more about this attack on Russia.
06:15Yes, indeed.
06:16As you said, this was one of the largest attacks.
06:18In fact, according to a Russian official,
06:20it was the largest when it comes to Moscow in over a year.
06:23Kyiv confirmed the attack,
06:25saying they specifically targeted military, industrial,
06:27and fuel infrastructure in Moscow region,
06:30including a plant which produces semiconductors
06:33for Russia's military-industrial complex,
06:35also two pumping stations,
06:36and Moscow oil refinery.
06:38Now, Russian authorities said the residential building
06:41was also damaged during the attack.
06:45According to Russia's defense ministry in general,
06:48they have intercepted, allegedly,
06:50over a thousand drones on Russia.
06:53That was, according to Moscow officials,
06:57that was the scale of this attack made.
07:00And, of course, this is not the furthest attack
07:02that Ukraine did in terms of the long-range distance,
07:06but it was very significant,
07:07given that this is indeed Russia's capital.
07:09Yeah, it's very rare,
07:10and I'm sure our viewers this morning are thinking the same.
07:12Why do they target Moscow?
07:13Well, for Kyiv, that was a clear demonstration
07:16of its capabilities.
07:17This is a very clear and simple message
07:21that Kyiv can reach Moscow if it wants to.
07:25Moscow, of course, being Russia's most protected city
07:28in terms of air defense.
07:30Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky,
07:32he did call it entirely justified,
07:34and he also tweeted about the attack,
07:37saying our responses to Russia's prolongation of the war
07:40and its attacks on our cities and communities
07:42are entirely justified.
07:44Ukrainian long-range sanctions reached the Moscow region,
07:47and we are clearly telling the Russians
07:49their state must end its war.
07:52Now, what he means here is, of course,
07:54the attack last week on Kyiv
07:57when the residential building was hit
07:58and 24 people were killed in that Russian attack.
08:01Volodymyr Zelensky, in this case,
08:02is sending the message
08:03that he can indeed move Russia's war
08:06back to Russia's territory.
08:08And we can see the effect of it
08:09given the scale of the fear
08:11and also all these videos on social media
08:13by the Moscow residents showing that attack may.
08:17OK, Sasha Bakalina, thank you so much for that update.
08:20Now, moving on to the Middle East,
08:22where a drone strike has triggered a fire
08:24near a nuclear plant in the United Arab Emirates.
08:27The incident that has been condemned by the region
08:30and the International Atomic Energy Agency
08:32highlights just how fragile the ceasefire
08:35between the U.S. and Iran really is.
08:37For more, we can head straight over to Qatar,
08:39where our correspondent, Adel Khalim,
08:41is standing by for us this morning.
08:43Tell us, what is the latest
08:44on this nuclear plant bombing, Adel?
08:49Yeah, Maeve, this is really the kind of incident
08:51that Gulf countries were hoping to avoid.
08:53While the ceasefire is still technically in place,
08:56clearly tensions never went away.
08:58Now, what happened on Sunday
08:59was a drone hit the perimeter
09:01of the Baraka power plant in the UAE,
09:04just outside the,
09:06which roughly supplies about a quarter
09:09of the country's energy.
09:10And according to Emirati officials,
09:12now three drones entered UAE airspace from the west
09:16and hit the electrical generator
09:17outside the main facility,
09:20sparking a fire.
09:21Now, the Abu Dhabi media office was quick to report
09:23there was no radiation leak,
09:25no injuries reported.
09:26In fact, the generators were continuing
09:27to operate as normally.
09:28But even without casualties,
09:29this is hugely symbolic.
09:31Any attack on a nuclear facility
09:33raises serious questions.
09:35And while the UAE didn't publicly blame Iran,
09:38analysts do say this was a warning shot
09:40as regional tensions continue to escalate once again.
09:44Maeve?
09:44And Adel, President Trump
09:45and Iran's Foreign Minister,
09:46Abbas Arachi, have reacted to this.
09:48so we can actually together take a listen
09:49to what they have to say.
09:51I could say this with a very, very strong conviction.
09:55Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.
09:58It's not going to happen.
09:58They have no Navy, no Air Force,
10:00no anti-anything.
10:02By the way,
10:02we knocked out 85% of their manufacturing for the missiles.
10:07An attack on our nuclear facilities
10:09has already taken place once
10:11and they claim they completely destroyed them.
10:13Yet now,
10:14they're once again
10:15talking about attacking the facilities.
10:17These contradictory statements
10:18truly indicate
10:19the depth of America's confusion
10:21regarding their objectives in this war.
10:25So as you can see,
10:26their tensions have clearly not gone away
10:27and we're also hearing, Adel,
10:28that Israel and the U.S.
10:30are planning to renew the war.
10:31What can you tell us?
10:35Yeah, those comments really accentuate
10:37where we stand right now.
10:38Publicly, both sides are calling for diplomacy,
10:40but at the same time,
10:41they're preparing for the eventuality
10:43or possibility of what could come next.
10:45Iranian officials have openly said
10:47that during the ceasefire,
10:48they were able to regroup
10:49and restock their strike systems.
10:52Meanwhile, military activity
10:54across the region hasn't slowed down.
10:55U.S. Central Command says
10:57American naval forces
10:58continuing their blockade
10:59of the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz
11:02and as of Sunday,
11:04it says 81 commercial vessels
11:06were redirected
11:07and four disabled.
11:08And as you mentioned,
11:09there are reports
11:09that Israel and the U.S.
11:10are coordinating future strikes
11:12if negotiations fail.
11:14To that end,
11:14U.S. President Donald Trump
11:16doubled down
11:16on his true social account
11:18saying for Iran,
11:19the clock is ticking
11:20and they better get moving fast
11:22or there won't be anything left of them.
11:24Time is of the essence.
11:25So right now we're seeing
11:26technically the ceasefire still holds,
11:28but all parties
11:30are bracing for the possibility
11:32of what could come next.
11:33Maeve?
11:34Okay, very stressful time,
11:35of course,
11:35there for your region
11:36and the world.
11:37Thank you so much
11:37for that update there,
11:38Adele Khali.
11:39And now moving on
11:40from the Netherlands
11:41to Sweden
11:42and then on to Oslo
11:43and Rome,
11:44India's Narendra Modi
11:46is on a whistle-stop tour
11:47across Europe
11:48sitting down
11:49with various European leaders.
11:50After hosting foreign ministers
11:52from BRIC countries
11:53just last Friday,
11:54he's here to celebrate,
11:55of course,
11:56the historic EU-India deal
11:58signed earlier this year.
11:59For more on what to expect
12:01from his trip,
12:02here's our Jakob Yanis.
12:05Have you ever wondered
12:06how the world's fastest-growing
12:08major economy
12:09manages a crisis at home
12:10while reshaping global trade?
12:13While New Delhi scrambles
12:14to protect a sinking rupee
12:15hit by energy shocks
12:16from the Iran war,
12:18Prime Minister Narendra Modi
12:19is launching a massive
12:20diplomatic offensive
12:21across Europe.
12:22And months after
12:24historic EU-India
12:25free trade agreements,
12:26this tour executes
12:28that mother-of-all deals
12:30by balancing Brussels
12:31with individual capitals.
12:33And if we follow
12:34the Prime Minister's
12:35itinerary day by day,
12:37the calendar reveals
12:38exactly what's at stake.
12:42And over the weekend,
12:44Modi met with
12:45Dutch Prime Minister
12:46Rob Jetten.
12:47The Netherlands
12:48is a key trading partner
12:49for India
12:49with bilateral trade
12:51worth nearly
12:52$28 billion.
12:53And the immediate price
12:55is an $11 billion
12:56semiconductor deal
12:57between Tata Electronics
12:59and Dutch giant ASML
13:01to build a cutting-edge
13:02microchip plant
13:03in Western India.
13:04And it is a textbook example
13:06of Europe's
13:06China Plus One strategy
13:08as Western companies
13:09rush to diversify
13:10supply chains
13:11away from Beijing.
13:13And now the focus
13:14shifts to Sweden,
13:15where today
13:15Modi is meeting
13:16Prime Minister
13:17Ulf Kristersson
13:18and European Commission
13:19President
13:20Ursula von der Leyen
13:21at the European run-table
13:23for industry.
13:24And here is a side note.
13:25While capitals
13:26like Stockholm
13:27provide India
13:28with specific tech,
13:29defense,
13:30and green transition deals,
13:31Brussels provides here
13:33the regulatory alignment
13:34and massive tariff cuts
13:36needed to unlock
13:37the entire European market.
13:39But hey,
13:41that's not all.
13:42Tomorrow,
13:43Modi attends
13:43the India-Nordic summit
13:45in Oslo,
13:46engaging Nordic leaders
13:47on clean energy
13:48and Arctic shipping routes
13:49opened up by climate change.
13:51And this grand tour
13:53will conclude
13:53on Wednesday
13:54in Italy
13:55with Prime Minister
13:56Giorgia Meloni,
13:57where both leaders
13:58will focus on maritime security
13:59and a joint action plan
14:01for legal migration channels.
14:03And I know,
14:04it sounds complex,
14:05but one thing is certain.
14:06For European leaders
14:07facing slowing economies,
14:09rolling out the red carpet
14:11is no longer a luxury.
14:12It is a strategic necessity.
14:14And the world's
14:15most populous nation
14:16becomes an indispensable
14:17geopolitical counterweight
14:19when Europe's
14:20historic partners
14:21look away.
14:27Jakob Janus there for us.
14:29And now for the view
14:29from Finland.
14:30Coming up,
14:31we'll be joined by
14:32Ville Tavio,
14:33Finnish Minister
14:34for Foreign Trade
14:35and Development
14:36in Brussels today
14:37for talks with ministers
14:38from all across the EU.
14:40Ville Tavio is a member
14:41of the National Conservative
14:42Finns Party
14:43and he's been active
14:44in national politics
14:45for several years.
14:46Good morning, Minister.
14:47Lovely to have you with us.
14:48Good morning.
14:49Great to be here.
14:49So first,
14:50we're of course
14:50looking at those pictures
14:52of the Indian head of state
14:53travelling all across Europe.
14:55This comes just after
14:56that big historic deal
14:57was signed.
14:58What's Finland's view here?
14:59What's your view here?
15:00Well,
15:00the Finnish president
15:01also had a state visit
15:02to India
15:03a couple months ago
15:05and it's absolutely
15:07one strategic partnership
15:10in order to
15:11diverse the trade.
15:12And tell me,
15:13it comes just
15:14a couple of days
15:14after India
15:15hosted BRICS
15:16foreign ministers.
15:17So is there anything
15:18the European Union
15:18can do to put pressure
15:20on India
15:21to help end the war
15:22in Ukraine?
15:24I really hope so,
15:26of course.
15:26And that's one of the reasons
15:27that Finland thinks
15:28it's important
15:29to have these
15:29close relations.
15:31But I would say
15:32that rather recently
15:34we've seen
15:35development
15:36in the trade
15:37and the quest
15:39in diversification
15:41of trade
15:41and China
15:42and China
15:42plus one
15:42mission
15:43instead of
15:44focusing
15:45only
15:46on these
15:47difficult topics.
15:48Because of course
15:49you had that drone
15:49incident on Friday
15:50which seems
15:51to have been settled.
15:52But let's talk
15:52about this big week
15:53for the EU-US
15:55trade deal
15:56that could get
15:56over the line
15:57by June.
15:58But in the European
15:58Parliaments
15:59we're seeing
15:59a lot of different
16:00debates.
16:01There'll be
16:01trilogues this week
16:02so negotiations
16:03on whether or not
16:04to put conditions
16:05on this deal
16:06that of course
16:06as you know
16:07is pretty
16:08controversial.
16:08But putting conditions
16:10on it
16:10at this late stage
16:11could that not
16:11anger
16:12President Donald Trump?
16:13What is your view here?
16:15Well we are
16:16in favour
16:16of forcing
16:18what's agreed.
16:20And we see
16:21cautious optimism
16:22that the trilogues
16:24are moving
16:25very well
16:26to my knowledge.
16:27So after all
16:29we want to create
16:30bridges
16:30and not to burn
16:32bridges.
16:33So hopefully
16:35But do you trust
16:35President Trump?
16:36He can be very
16:37unpredictable
16:37and cause a lot
16:38of stress
16:38for European businesses
16:39and finished
16:40businesses?
16:41We are not
16:42expecting
16:44predictability
16:45from him
16:46but I think
16:48he's a hard
16:48negotiator.
16:49I think it's
16:50debatable
16:51whether USA
16:52has kind of
16:53benefited
16:53from his
16:55actions.
16:56Maybe we'll
16:57see that
16:58at the end
16:58of his term
16:59but from
17:00Europe's point
17:00of view
17:01we want
17:01to keep
17:02on
17:02the trade
17:04growing.
17:04We want
17:05to build
17:06a steady
17:06trade.
17:07That's what
17:08the companies
17:08need.
17:09But if
17:09Donald Trump
17:10plays hardball
17:11should the
17:11Europeans
17:11play hardball
17:12too?
17:13Yes.
17:14Me and several
17:14other ministers
17:15we've taken
17:16stances before
17:17whereas
17:18we think
17:19the European
17:19Union
17:20should have
17:20used
17:21the package
17:22we made
17:24in order
17:25to
17:26pressure
17:27USA more
17:28but
17:28at this
17:29point
17:29we are
17:30ready to
17:31move
17:31forward
17:31with
17:32the
17:32deal
17:32as
17:33agreed
17:33and
17:34of
17:34course
17:35our
17:36requirement
17:36is that
17:37the USA
17:37also
17:38respects
17:38this
17:39deal.
17:39And a
17:39big week
17:40as well
17:40for the EU
17:40they're
17:41heading
17:41to
17:41Mexico
17:41this
17:42week.
17:43Could
17:43a deal
17:43be signed
17:44there?
17:44We know
17:44the last
17:45EU-Mexico
17:45summit
17:45was back
17:46in
17:462015.
17:47Yes.
17:48We are
17:48looking
17:48for
17:49renewing
17:50the
17:50global
17:50treaty
17:51with
17:51EU-Mexico
17:52and
17:53that's
17:54also
17:54I mean
17:55it's a
17:55very
17:55important
17:56point.
17:58trade
17:59deal
18:00already
18:01applied
18:01so
18:03that
18:03doesn't
18:04include
18:04Mexico
18:05so
18:06it's
18:06very
18:06good
18:07that
18:07we
18:07get
18:07a
18:08new
18:09deal
18:10with
18:10Mexico
18:10as
18:10well.
18:11It's
18:11our
18:12second
18:12largest
18:13partner
18:13in
18:14Latin
18:14America.
18:15And
18:15meanwhile
18:15of course
18:16big focus
18:16of your
18:16talks
18:17this
18:17week
18:17on
18:17the
18:17impact
18:18the
18:18ongoing
18:18war
18:19in
18:19the
18:19Middle
18:19East
18:19is
18:19having
18:20on
18:20Europeans.
18:21Do you
18:21think
18:21enough
18:21has
18:21been
18:22done
18:22by
18:22Brussels
18:22in
18:24order
18:24to
18:24soften
18:25that
18:25blow
18:25on
18:26Europeans?
18:27Well
18:27from
18:28the
18:28trade
18:28minister
18:29point
18:29of
18:29view
18:29I
18:30can
18:30tell
18:30that
18:30the
18:31past
18:31three
18:32years
18:32that
18:32I've
18:32been
18:32a
18:33minister
18:33of
18:33trade
18:33it's
18:35the
18:36security
18:36concerns
18:36have
18:37been
18:38rising
18:38all
18:39the
18:39time
18:39so
18:39I
18:39think
18:39trade
18:40ministers
18:40are
18:40more
18:41dealing
18:41with
18:42the
18:42security
18:42concerns
18:43and
18:43increasingly
18:44involved
18:45in
18:45the
18:45security
18:46issues
18:46so
18:46whether
18:47it's
18:47diversification
18:48of
18:48trade
18:48but
18:49also
18:49energy
18:50basic
18:50supply
18:51chains
18:51now
18:53wartime
18:56discomforts
18:56okay
18:57minister
18:57thank you
18:58so much
18:58for coming
18:58into us
18:58here today
18:59on
18:59Euronews
19:00and being
19:00our guest
19:00on
19:01Europe
19:01Today
19:01that does
19:02bring
19:02though
19:02this
19:03edition
19:03of
19:03Europe
19:03Today
19:04to an
19:04end
19:04any
19:04points
19:05comments
19:05questions
19:06for us
19:07you can
19:07always
19:07reach out
19:07at
19:08europetoday
19:08at
19:09euronews.com
19:10but for now
19:10thank you so much
19:11for tuning in
19:11take care
19:12and do visit
19:13euronews.com
19:13for more
19:14news
19:14and analysis
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