GENEVA

The Spanish foreign minister on Friday criticized the rise of "selfish nationalism," saying that it goes against the core European values of "tolerance, pluralism and democracy."

"Selfish nationalism is the opposite of European values," Jose Manuel Albares said, speaking in a panel discussion on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. "Europe was built to avoid war on European soil and to fight against that selfish nationalism."

His remarks came in response to a question about whether Europe is becoming more inward-looking as a response to US President Donald Trump’s “America first” push.

"Europe can only exist as an open society," Albares said.

Regarding the US administration’s cuts to its foreign aid agency USAID, Albares said he sees an opportunity amidst the challenges.

The foreign minister emphasized Spain's commitment to supporting Africa's development.

“We have tripled our development aid programs, and we have doubled our emergency aid to Africa, and certainly Spain will push forward for that,” he said.

Albares also highlighted the importance of engaging the private sector in Africa and maintaining high-level political dialogues with the continent.

Looking ahead, he expressed hope for the creation of new alliances at the upcoming UN conference on development financing.

Asked if some of those alliances include the US, he said: "I hope so. It is a big country and the natural ally of the European Union,” even though it “seems to be going in a slightly different direction right now."