The Socialist International, Felipe González and Bettino Craxi in the Definition of a Community policy: The Case of Nicaragua

Abstract

This article shows, through the Nicaraguan case, how the Italian socialist party of Bettino Craxi and the Spanish socialist party of Felipe González became interested in Latin America and defined a common and a community policy towards Central America. Indeed, during the eighties the Italian and the Spanish socialists sought to include the Latin American concerns within the Community. For the first time, the Community began to be interested in the political and social aspects of the region. In this bi-regional rapprochement, the Socialist International played a key role because this body allowed González and Craxi to internationalize their parties, to strengthen international links and in some way to define their foreign policies.The study of these relations is important today because they constitute the bedrock on which the entire structure that currently rules Euro-Latin American relations was built.