Spanish minister Óscar Puente publicly criticizes King Felipe VI for posing with right-wing activist Javier Negre in Colombia

The encounter in Cali

On August 7, during the inauguration of Colombia's new president Abelardo de la Espriella in Cali, King Felipe VI greeted and briefly spoke with Javier Negre, founder of the media channel Estado de Alarma (also referred to as EdaTV). Negre asked the King for a photograph, which Felipe VI acceded to. The moment, captured on video, lasted only a few seconds and occurred outside any formal protocol, alongside numerous other guests including members of the PP, Vox, and Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, who was part of the official delegation accompanying the King.

Puente's criticism

On August 11, Transport Minister Óscar Puente shared a post on X from the account @bilboantifa that included the video and demanded "¡República ya!" alongside it. Puente wrote: "Esta situación me parece una absoluta ignominia." Later that day, Puente elaborated with four reasons: Negre had repeatedly and gravely insulted Queen Letizia, had gravely insulted the King, was "un profesional de la difamación y el bulo," and was "un activista de ultraderecha que practica el acoso a los políticos progresistas y a sus familias, entre otras a la mía." Puente also noted that people are in prison in Spain for injurias a la Corona.

“El Rey es un símbolo y no es inocuo junto a quién se fotografía o a quien saluda en un contexto que no es protocolario, ni forma parte de ninguna relación institucional. Su imagen se contamina y la del sujeto con el que se fotografía se limpia. Y ambas cosas son inaceptables.”

PP response and broader context

The PP reacted swiftly. Secretary General Miguel Tellado wrote on X that the real "ignominia" was the arrival of 70,000 undocumented migrants to Ceuta and the government's inaction, adding "Lo arreglaremos en las urnas, Óscar." Vice Secretary Jaime de los Santos called Puente "ultra" and said "la única ignominia son él y su jefe, su Gobierno al completo." He also criticized Puente for using social media to attack the head of state and for failing to take responsibility after the Adamuz rail accident. Vox, which has maintained a strategy of distancing itself from the Crown, did not respond.

Negre's reply and the Ceuta backdrop

Negre responded on X: "Ignominia no es que el Rey de todos los españoles salude al propietario del grupo de medios más viral en política de Hispanoamérica." He added that the real ignominy was the King being forced to greet representatives of "un Gobierno corrupto que le bloquea su llegada a Ceuta." Puente replied: "Hay una sola verdad en tu tuit. Que eres un virus." The controversy unfolded against the backdrop of the Ceuta migration crisis, in which 72,000 people entered Spanish territory via the Tarajal breakwater. Felipe VI had requested to visit Ceuta but was told by minister Óscar López he would go "cuando sea oportuno" and "en coordinación con el Gobierno." The president of Ceuta, Juan Jesús Vivas, traveled to Mallorca to meet the King, saying he conveyed "el angustioso grito de auxilio de Ceuta."