Relationship dossier
Ireland
Spain
Relationship assessment
Close EU partners with sustained bilateral cooperation and no major enduring dispute.
Ireland toward Spain
+55The Irish government cooperates with Spain through EU institutions and bilateral engagement, including agreements and exchanges spanning areas such as education and culture. Ireland has also supported closer EU coordination on shared policy issues.
Spain toward Ireland
+55The Spanish government cooperates with Ireland through EU institutions and bilateral engagement, including agreements and exchanges spanning areas such as education and culture. Spain has also supported closer EU coordination on shared policy issues.
Overall relationship
+55The relationship is anchored in shared EU membership and reinforced by sustained bilateral contacts and cooperation across several policy and exchange areas. No major enduring bilateral dispute is known to dominate relations.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Ireland and Spain maintain a close relationship through European Union cooperation and sustained bilateral engagement. Both governments have supported shared EU positions and developed cooperation through regular high-level contacts and bilateral agreements. The countries also cooperate on issues including trade, education and cultural exchange, with no major enduring bilateral dispute shaping the relationship.
Key developments
Ireland and Spain joined the European Communities, placing bilateral relations within a shared framework of European integration.
Major uncertainties
- The current scope and implementation of bilateral cooperation outside EU frameworks are unclear.
- The extent of recent high-level bilateral engagement is uncertain.