page_title: Spain–United States relations
section_title: Bush and Zapatero, 2004–2008
hierarchical_section_title: Spain–United States relations / Bush and Zapatero, 2004–2008
caption_attribution_description: Español: George W. Bush recibe al presidente español, José Luis Ropdríguez Zapatero en la Casa Blanca con ocasión del encuentro del G-20. 14 de noviembre de 2008
context_page_description: The Spain–United States relations also referred to as the Spanish–American relations, refer to the diplomatic, social, economic and cultural relations between Spain and the United States.
  The troubled history of Spanish–American relations has been seen as one of "love and hate". The groundwork was laid by the colonization of parts of the Americas by Spain before 1700. The first settlement in Florida was a small outpost that never grew large. More permanent, much larger colonies in New Mexico and California, with a few in Texas and Arizona. Spanish settlements north of Mexico were the results of the same forces that later led the British to come to the East Coast. In order to add the Spanish dimension to the history of the US, the concept of "Spanish borderlands" was developed in 20th-century historiography to expand on the traditional Anglo-centric vision.
  Spain, provided indirect support to the new United States by fighting against Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. Madrid tacitly recognised the independence of the United States in 1783. The purchase of the underdeveloped Spanish Florida by the US was made effective in 1821.
context_section_description: The withdrawal caused a four-year downturn in relations between Washington and Madrid. A further rift was caused by the fact that Zapatero openly supported Democratic challenger John Kerry on the eve of the U.S. elections in 2004. Zapatero was not invited to the White House until the last months of the Bush administration, nor was Bush invited to La Moncloa. Aznar had visited Washington several times, becoming the first Spanish prime minister to address a joint meeting of Congress, in February 2004. Bush's fellow Republican, and candidate for the 2008 U.S. presidential election, John McCain, refused to commit to a meeting with Zapatero were he to be elected.
  Spain under Zapatero turned its focus to Europe from the United States, pursuing a middle road in dealing with tensions between Western powers and Islamic populations. In a May 2007 interview with El País, Daniel Fried, Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs, commenting on the overall relationship between Spain and the United States, stated: "We work together very well on some issues. I think the Spanish–American relationship can develop more. I think some Spanish officials are knowledgeable and very skilled professionals and we work with them very well. I would like to see Spain active in the world, working through NATO, active in Afghanistan. You're doing a lot in the Middle East because Moratinos knows a lot about it. But Spain is a big country and your economy is huge. I think Spain can be a force for security and peace and freedom in the world. I believe that Spain has that potential, and that's how I would like to see Spanish–American relations developing."
caption: Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and President George W. Bush meet for the 2008 G-20 Leaders Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy at the White House in November 2008. Tensions rose between the Zapatero and Bush governments over issues such as the Iraq War.
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