Zapatero denies involvement in Plus Ultra rescue and says seized €1.3 m jewellery was a courtesy gift

Former Spanish prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is under investigation for alleged influence‑peddling in the 2021 state‑backed rescue of the airline Plus Ultra, a loan of €53 million. Business partner Julio Martínez and other airline executives have testified that Zapatero mediated the aid and that the airline paid a 1 % commission, roughly €530 000, for his assistance.

In his first televised interview on TVE’s “Mañaneros 360,” Zapatero reiterated that he never spoke with anyone at the government or the state investment fund SEPI about the rescue and maintains he had no role in securing the loan. He also addressed the discovery of jewellery and luxury watches valued at about €1.3 million in his office, describing them as a personal “courtesy gift” received years ago from an unnamed foreign country, and said he might have refused the gift in hindsight.

Zapatero’s denial has been echoed by the governing PSOE, which stresses the presumption of innocence, while the opposition People’s Party claims he can lie and has not answered key questions. The case continues to generate political pressure on Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s administration.