More than 3000 participants. At least twelve heads of government, about a hundred center-left and left-wing organizations, among them social democratic parties, unions and think tanks. The International Conference on Progressive Mobilization, initiated by the socialist prime minister of , , which took place .
Firstly, due to participation, given the number of political leaders who attended. And also, because he surrounded again, Pedro Sánchez, with the glamor of the leader of an “International of Progressives” standing against the American president Donald Trump, who, with the war in Iran, and not only, has caused a major crisis in the international order – political and economic.
Pedro Sánchez is doubly favored because the meeting took place at a difficult time for him inside Spain: the ruling Socialist Party is faced with corruption scandals involving important officials such as José Luis Abalos, the former transport minister and former number 2 in the Spanish government, who is in prison on charges of embezzling public funds and whose trial is ongoing.
Great involvement of leaders
In Barcelona were, among others, President Lula of Brazil, the President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, but also the President of the European Council, the Portuguese Socialist Antonio Costa, and the Socialist Vice Chancellor of Germany and Minister of Finance, Lars Klingbeil.
From the other side of the Atlantic, the Democratic governor of Minnesota, Tim Walsh, candidate for vice president of the USA alongside Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, and the Democratic senator, Chris Murphy, arrived in Barcelona. It was also attended by European socialist leaders such as Eli Schlein, of the Democratic Party of Italy and Nikos Androulakis of Pasok.
A window of opportunity for the social democratic forces
At the Barcelona meeting, there was a widespread feeling that a window of opportunity was opening for progressive forces, as noted by the Spanish newspaper El Pais, based also on some recent political developments, which show the retreat of the Far Right and the Right: the defeat of Viktor Orbán in Hungary; the failure of the referendum on constitutional revision, which was promoted by Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni; the gains of the left factions in major cities in France, in the municipal elections of March, as pointed out by Olivier Faure, first secretary of the Socialist Party of France; the intense indignation over the wars in Gaza and Iran; as well as the noticeable fall – to 36% – of Donald Trump, in the opinion polls.
However, these developments do not justify excessive optimism for the Social Democrats. In Hungary, as in Poland, the defeat of the ethno-populists was achieved by conservative politicians. In Latin America, the rise of the Far Right continues, while the connection of Latin American countries with Trump’s USA does not seem, according to analysts, to involve political costs for them for now.
Significant political differences between countries with left-wing governments
Pedro Sánchez pointed to the need to strengthen the unity of the center-left space, which is characterized by fragmentation and even tensions. The International of Progressives, however, has failed to bridge deep differences — such as diverging attitudes toward Russian aggression in Ukraine between European social democrats and Brazil’s President Lula and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, who are more wary of Russian President Putin (Brazil and South Africa are also members of the BRICS group, together with Russia); the summit did not even bridge the gap that separates many moderate European social democracies from the populist left of Gustavo Petros in Colombia.
Nevertheless, the presence of so many leaders and important representatives of the international Center Left in Barcelona, as well as the messages of support expressed by figures such as former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani and US independent left-wing congressman Bernie Sanders, had their significance. Economists of international renown, such as Mariana Matsucato and Gabriel Zucman, also participated in the session with their interventions.
Proposals for the democratization of international institutions
In terms of policy making, the Barcelona summit also served as a brainstorming ground. Regarding the international order, President Lula of Brazil argued that “the progressive space must promote the democratization of institutions such as the Security Council, the IMF and the World Bank.” His position echoed an earlier statement by Pedro Sanchez, in favor of a rules-based international order and a more democratic and representative UN.
The danger of technology oligarchs to democracy
During the session, special emphasis was also placed on the dangers arising from the power of technology oligarchs, who have tools with enormous potential to influence public opinion. As argued by experts, “It is not possible to build a democratic model on structures controlled by technology oligarchs. We need public digital infrastructures that serve society.” In this specific field, the will of the participants in the session was shown to proceed with regulatory interventions.
