The Russian foreign ministry has today summonsed Spain's ambassador in Moscow, Fernando Valderrama, to convey its surprise and disappointment over comments by acting foreign minister and MEP-elect Josep Borrell in an interview with El Periódico published 23rd May which it considers to be "unfriendly". The ministry says in a statement that the comments "are contradictory and harm relations between Russia and Spain".
During the interview, asked about Europe's geopolitical role in a changing world, Borrell said, among other remarks: "Our old enemy, Russia, [...] is a threat again and China is appearing as a rival". Among the other changes he highlighted over the last five years were the election of Donald Trump and the Brexit process.
Russia says that its bilateral relations with Spain are seen by both sides as "friendly, those of partners and mutually beneficial" and that this has been reflected in all official documents "signed by the two countries in recent years".
Sources from Spain's embassy in Moscow have confirmed the meeting, which was requested by the First European Department (which covers the south-west of the continent). The ambassador met with the department's director, Aleksey Vladimirovich Paramonov.