Judge allows Begoña Gómez to travel to UK for daughter's graduation, denies NATO summit attendance

A Spanish judge has partially granted and partially denied travel requests for Begoña Gómez, the wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Judge Juan Carlos Peinado, who previously ordered Gómez's passport confiscated amid a four-count investigation, ruled that she cannot travel to Turkey for the upcoming NATO summit.

However, the judge did permit Gómez to travel to the United Kingdom to attend her daughter's graduation ceremony. This decision slightly alters the restrictions placed on Gómez, who is the first spouse of a Spanish head of government to face judicial limitations on her movement. Her legal team has appealed the passport confiscation to the Provincial Court of Madrid.

“

invited for reasons of institutional courtesy and does not have an active intervention in said summit.

The ruling was issued by Judge Antonio Viejo, who is substituting for Judge Peinado during his vacation. Viejo reasoned that Gómez's attendance at the NATO summit was based on an "invitation for reasons of international institutional courtesy" and did not involve an "active intervention." He also noted that Turkey is not part of the European Union's framework for freedom, security, and justice, which facilitates judicial cooperation.

Conversely, the judge approved the trip to the UK, citing the "good relationship of judicial cooperation between Spain and the United Kingdom, even after Brexit," and the nature of the event. Gómez had requested permission to travel to Turkey from July 7-10 to accompany her husband as part of the official Spanish delegation, having received an official invitation from Emine Erdoğan, the wife of the Turkish President. Following the summit, she sought to travel via London for her daughter's graduation.

“

This claim must be favorably received given, on the one hand, the good relationship of judicial cooperation between Spain and the United Kingdom, even after Brexit, as well as the nature of the event to be attended.