Foreign relations of Equatorial Guinea


A transitional agreement, signed in October 1968, implemented a Spanish preindependence decision to assist Equatorial Guinea and provided for the temporary maintenance of Spanish forces there. A dispute with President Francisco Macías Nguema in 1969 led to a request that all Spanish troops immediately depart, and many civilians left at the same time. Diplomatic relations between the two countries were never broken but were suspended by Spain in March 1977 in the wake of renewed disputes. After Macias' fall in 1979, President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo asked for Spanish assistance, and since then, Spain has regained influence in Equatorial Guinea's diplomatic relations. The two countries signed permanent agreements for economic and technical cooperation, private concessions, and trade relations. President Obiang made an official visit to Madrid in March 2001, and senior Spanish Foreign Ministry officials visited Malabo during 2001 as well. Spain maintained a bilateral assistance program in Equatorial Guinea. Some Equato-Guinean opposition elements are based in Spain to the annoyance of the government in Malabo.
The government's official policy is one of nonalignment. In its search for assistance to meet the goal of national reconstruction, the government of Equatorial Guinea has established diplomatic relations with numerous European and Third World countries. Having achieved independence under UN sponsorship, Equatorial Guinea feels a special kinship with that organization. It became the 126th UN member on November 12, 1968. Equatorial Guinea currently serves as a non-permanent member on the United Nations Security Council with a two-year term ending in 2019.

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