Former Spanish PM Zapatero alleged to have brokered flight permits for Plus Ultra in Venezuela

Intercepted communications examined by Spain's intelligence service UDEF reveal that former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero allegedly intervened with Venezuelan officials to obtain flight permissions for the Spanish airline Plus Ultra during the COVID‑19 pandemic. Messages between airline executives Julio Martínez Sola and owner Rodolfo Reyes discuss Zapatero’s direct talks with Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza and interim President Delcy Rodríguez, and describe a plan to secure six flights through Venezuela’s civil aviation authority without diplomatic notes.

The indictment presented to the Audiencia Nacional alleges that Martínez received at least €458,000 from the consulting firm Análisis Relevante SL, which in turn paid roughly €450,000 to Zapatero for these “global advisory” services. The scheme is portrayed as an effort to bypass normal embassy channels and facilitate repatriation flights for Spanish citizens from Caracas.