evidence: Defence minister Nuno Melo shocked Spaniards when he told local media that the town of Olivenza, in Badajoz, is ‘naturally Portuguese’, adding: "This is not a provocation." [...] "As far as Olivenza is concerned, the Portuguese state does not recognise it as being Spanish territory." [...] Meanwhile, the former president of Extremadura – and an Olivenza native – Guillermo Fernández Vara, wrote on X: "Olivenza is an Extremaduran and Spanish city, proud of its Portuguese past.