Miguel Ángel Revilla, the Cantabrian friend of López Obrador to unclog the diplomatic conflict with Spain

The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and that of Cantabria, Miguel Ángel Revilla, in Santander in 2017.@RevillaMiguelA (RR.SS.)

On January 23, the president of Cantabria, Miguel Ángel Revilla, received a call on his cell phone.

It was a long number that he had not saved in the address book.

He thought about not picking up the phone but since it kept ringing he ended up answering.

As he did so, a voice on the other end of the line began to sing a song.

“Who is it?” he asked a little dazed.

It was Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

The president of Mexico was congratulating him on his birthday by singing

That has been the last direct contact between two politicians who became good friends since in 2017 López Obrador visited his grandfather's land, a small town in Cantabria, at the invitation of Revilla himself.

The relationship had cooled after the letter that the Mexican president sent the King three years ago demanding an apology for the excesses of colonization, which has since strained diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The same issue that has now matched them again.

López Obrador threw down the first glove a couple of weeks ago during one of his morning conferences: “He is one of the best politicians in the world.

He has a conciliatory capacity that would come in handy for Spain”.

Revilla has responded by even acknowledging contacts with the Spanish Government in this regard.

Including a message from President Pedro Sánchez and a call from the Secretary of State for Ibero-America, Juan Fernández Trigo.

Official sources consulted by EL PAÍS have confirmed the contacts.

In any case, Revilla acknowledges to this newspaper in a telephone conversation that there has been no direct proposal to start a possible negotiation and also rules out taking the initiative himself.

"I'm not going to call anyone but everyone has my phone.

I am delighted to collaborate.

It seems unfortunate to me that due to a matter of pride and declarations it cannot be fixed, ”he says by phone.

The Cantabrian president also says that "several Mexican businessmen who are very interested in approaching positions" have called him.

In 2019, a few months after coming to power, López Obrador sent a letter to Felipe VI demanding that he apologize for the abuses committed in the Conquest.

A claim that was not addressed by Spanish diplomacy due to the terms in which he was directed, and that the Mexican president took very badly.

The clash was the beginning of diplomatic tensions between the two countries, which has included recurring criticism of companies such as Iberdrola, OHL or Repsol.

The dispute also cooled the relationship with Revilla.

“We are friends, but we have had some friction.

I told him that the letter was not well planned.

We had even spoken before all this that an act of mutual forgiveness by both countries would be good.

Those first conversations about how to address the diplomatic issue took place at La Chingada, López Obrador's ranch.

Revilla was one of the president's three personal guests at the 2018 inauguration ceremony alongside Cuban singer Silvio Rodríguez and British Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Before, they spent a few days in La Chingada.

“There were three days where he did not pick up the phone to anyone.

We were playing dominoes, drinking beer and chatting about politics while Silvio played songs”.

Revilla, 79, a very popular ruler in Spain at the head of a regionalist party, the PRC, and who tends to distance himself from the traditional codes of politics, acknowledges that he has shared affinities with López Obrador, 10 years his junior.

"We both like to get up early and talk to everyone."

He also says that his friend adores the Spanish people, whom he considers a fighter and a migrant, as was his own grandfather's at the beginning of the 20th century.

"Whoever says that he hates Spain is very wrong," adds Revilla.

“What he doesn't like is the arrogance of some companies.

And it is true that we Spaniards still have a certain imperial arrogance, when compared to Mexico we are nothing.

We are a biologically decadent nation.

Mexico is the future of the Spanish language and we are united by a brotherhood on many levels.

When López Obrador visited Cantabria, Revilla showed him the house where his family lived in Ampuero, a small rural municipality of just 5,000 inhabitants.

The Cantabrian president remembers that "tears came to his eyes" and that days later he sent him some old photos because he wanted him to see how his grandfather spoke to the cows.

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