The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, signs this Friday an article in the US magazine Foreign Affairs, one of the reference publications in international politics, in which he warns of the risk that war will again become an accepted instrument of the States. Under the title The World’s Last Chance for Peace (The world’s last chance for peace), he argues that the international community must recover its commitment to the peaceful resolution of conflicts and avoid a new global confrontation.
Sánchez argues that the increase in armed clashes, the growth of military spending, and the modernization of nuclear arsenals reflect a dangerous normalization of war. In his view, the international order built after the Second World War is losing the capacity to contain aggressions and channel disputes between countries.
The president’s central proposal is to strengthen international cooperation through a model he calls “maxilateralism”: an alliance as broad as possible of countries, as opposed to the reduced coalitions that operate outside multilateral institutions. “Nothing is more dangerous than normalizing war”, Sánchez writes, calling for collective action to make armed conflicts increasingly difficult to start and sustain.
The increase in conflicts and the risk of a global escalation
The president places the deterioration of international security within a trend which, according to the data he cites, has accelerated in recent years. He draws on the Uppsala Conflict Data Program to point out that in 2025 there were 65 active conflicts with state participation, double that in 2010. He also puts the number of deaths recorded in those clashes at 250,000 and the number of people displaced by the war worldwide at nearly 120 million.
In his assessment, he includes invasions and military operations that he considers contrary to the United Nations Charter, with references to Ukraine, Lebanon, and Iran. He also warns that clashes could spread to neighboring countries, affect commercial routes, and lead to increases in the prices of energy, fertilizers, and other raw materials.
Rearmament constitutes another of the axes of its analysis. Sánchez says that global military spending has increased by more than 40% in the last decade and is approaching three trillion dollars in annual spending. To this, he adds the modernization of nuclear arsenals and the loss of control mechanisms among the main powers, after the United States and Russia have failed to preserve the last treaty that limited their strategic weapons.
The article also incorporates artificial intelligence into security risks. The president warns about its use in cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns and military systems, especially when it is integrated into nuclear technologies. He considers that automation can reduce the time available for human intervention and increase the possibility of calculation errors or involuntary escalations.
Spain’s position on Gaza, Ukraine and Iran
The president of Spain uses Spanish foreign policy as an example of the decisions that, in his opinion, can help contain conflicts. In the case of Gaza, he recalls that Spain recognized the State of Palestine in May 2024 and that it has called for a permanent ceasefire, the release of the hostages and the unrestricted entry of humanitarian aid. It also defends the work of the International Court of Justice and of the International Criminal Court in order to demand accountability for possible violations of international law.
Regarding Ukraine, he asserts Spain’s support for European sanctions against Russia and for financial, humanitarian and military assistance intended to enable the country to defend its territory. In relation to the Middle East, he points out that Spain maintains an arms embargo on Israel since 2023.
It also devotes a specific section to the decision not to allow the United States to use Spanish territory and facilities for the war against Iran. He presents it as a strategic decision to avoid a further escalation, and not as a gesture of hostility toward Washington nor as support for the Iranian regime.
In addition, he defends Spain’s decision not to take on the 5% of GDP defense spending target proposed by NATO. Sánchez says that this position does not involve giving up on European defense and argues that security must combine deterrence capability with social protection, housing, healthcare, education and the ecological transition.
Reforming the United Nations and limiting the right of veto
The main institutional proposal of the article is to modify the composition of the UN Security Council. Sánchez considers that its current structure, with five permanent members with veto power, responds to the power balances after World War II and does not adequately represent the distribution of population and power in today’s world.
It proposes expanding the number of elected members and extending their terms beyond the current two years. The new positions should give priority to underrepresented regions, especially Africa and Latin America. It also proposes that regional organizations such as the European Union and the African Union have a presence on the Council, even through positions that currently correspond to states.
The president also calls for restricting the use of the veto when addressing mass atrocities, genocides, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. His proposal goes further: it proposes abolishing it completely to prevent a single country from blocking the international response to an aggression.
The reform he advocates is not limited to the United Nations. Sánchez proposes changing the distribution of voting power in the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to give more weight to emerging economies and to end the allocation, by convention, of their top executive positions to a European and an American, respectively. He also calls for reviewing the representation of developing countries in organizations such as the World Trade Organization.
Recover nuclear arms control agreements and regulate artificial intelligence
The article calls for recovering the international mechanisms that have limited the proliferation and deployment of nuclear weapons. Sánchez urges the United States and Russia to negotiate a treaty that would replace New START and incorporate China into the talks. He also asks for progress in the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and in negotiations to prohibit the production of fissile material intended for armaments.
In parallel, it proposes establishing international rules for the use of artificial intelligence in the military sphere, in particular in nuclear systems, with the aim of preserving human control over launch decision-making. Among the measures it puts forward are reducing the operational availability of arsenals, strengthening communications during crises, and protecting command systems against cyberattacks and information manipulation.
The president also argues for strengthening the capacity of the International Criminal Court. He considers that States that protect people claimed by this tribunal must face legal, diplomatic and financial consequences. In his view, international justice needs effective instruments to prevent those responsible for the most serious crimes from going unpunished.
Development and reducing inequality as peace policies
Pedro Sánchez argues that the prevention of conflicts cannot be limited to diplomacy and military deterrence. In the final stretch of the article, he links international security with reducing poverty, access to education, gender equality, strengthening democratic institutions, and the ability of societies to respond to natural disasters.
In this context, he asserts the Spanish agenda for development cooperation and cites the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, held in Seville last year. He also mentions initiatives to facilitate debt swaps for development investments, suspend payments after catastrophes, and finance climate, health, and social protection policies.
The president concludes that peace requires an international effort that leaves no region out and is not limited to agreements among a small group of powers. His appeal in Foreign Affairs is to preserve international rules and reform the institutions created after 1945 so that they can respond to current conflicts. The alternative, he warns, is to allow force to replace law in relations between States.