During the war in Lebanon, the Spanish government was openly and actively critical of Israel for using cluster bombs. This, however, does not stop the Spanish from continuing to manufacture and use such bombs when it comes to their own Spanish army.
Two members of the Spanish Parliament from the United Leftist Party (a radical faction), have recently submitted an inquiry to the parliament regarding stopping the production of cluster bombs in Spain. Spain is the world’s largest producer and exporter of cluster bombs, specializing in two types of bombs: Anti runway bombs, and anti tank and infantry mortars.
The Spanish government responded to the inquiry and said that stopping production will not be worth it. The Spanish newspaper El-Pais quoted government officials saying that cluster bombs are necessary for the operational capabilities of the Spanish army.
The Spanish criticism of Israel regarding cluster bombs is harsh. They say that the bombs used by Israel during the war in Lebanon and that have not exploded, pose a danger to the Spanish forces in UNIFIL who are currently deployed in southern Lebanon.
And if this is not enough, the Spanish government has announced they are freezing all talks with the Basque underground ETA in response to the latest terror bombing at Madrid’s international airport last week. Chairman of the Socialist Party Jose Blanco said that there will be no dialogue under fire, and if there is no dialogue, there is no peace process. Spain, by the way, is considered one of the most critical countries against Israel on the issue of negotiating with terror organizations.