From Tension to Solidarity: The Spain–Türkiye Connection

Developing technology, evolving social interactions, and social media’s increasing presence in our lives have made drastic changes to daily life. The dynamics of today’s world go well beyond politics or the economic state.

Nowadays, as of the start of March, the war between Israel and Iran has been impacting almost every part of the world. With the involvement of the United States, alongside Israel, the current situation’s impact stretches far beyond the physical warfare in the Middle East, affecting the rest of the world on a political and economic scale.

Due to its proximity to the region, Turkiye has been impacted by the severity of wartime conditions and has been moving cautiously in the global political arena. Besides international relations, as Turkiye already has a fragile economic state due to the skyrocketing inflation levels, volatile interest rates, and flawed strategic decisions, any change in the global scheme has a great impact on the country. Since Iran is a part of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the state is significant to many production facilities and processes, especially in the industrial area. Thus, as the petroleum exports have decreased as a result of the war, petroleum prices have increased drastically. This dramatic change hit Turkiye hard: in the last week, a 12 lira price increase was recorded. Subsequently, Turkiye has been experiencing hard days both politically and economically. Furthermore, the recent missile that was seen above Turkiye, despite being destroyed by NATO defenses, displays the risk of the war’s expansion.

As for the downing of the missile, Spain, a fellow NATO member, made prominent contributions, displaying its stance on the situation. After Spain’s aid, the Spanish and Turkish communities began developing warm relations on social media.

Within hours of the news, thousands of posts appeared on social media platforms, especially on X, expressing relief and gratitude towards the Spanish people. When Spanish users replied to these messages with warmth and solidarity, the relationships transformed into one of friendship and humor. The exchanges leveled up rapidly, with people sharing Spanish and Turkish flags together and citizens learning about each other’s cultures and languages.

Another notable trend was the number of Spanish people admiring Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, subsequent to the praise given to the prime minister of Spain, Pedro Sanchez, by the Turks. The prime minister was congratulated on his stance on international affairs. As for the Spaniards, some even quoted Atatürk, using his words to describe the status quo. Other users pointed out the cultural similarities between the two countries, like food, brotherhood, and football. Users joked about the match played between the two countries for the World Cup qualifiers.

At a time of global tensions and conflicts, the positive interactions between Spain and Turkiye highlighted the importance of sympathy and positive interactions between ordinary people. Such communication between citizens showed how small things can contribute to strengthening the connections between two communities, cultures, and countries.

Edited by: Leyla Hacioglu