José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero On 12 October 2003, during the Fiesta Nacional de España military parade held in Madrid, then opposition leader and presidential candidate Zapatero remained seated as a U.S. Marine Corps honour guard carrying the American flag walked past Zapatero and other VIPs. Everybody else stood as with the rest of the foreign guest armies representations. He declared afterwards that his action was a protest against the war and certainly not intended as an insult to the American people. Later on, during an official visit to Tunisia shortly after Zapatero was elected, he asked all of the countries with troops in Iraq
Official state car US$520,000), is said to be equipped with the latest features, runflats, level B7+ armouring, satellite communications and various special items that are kept secret by the Spanish officials. The fleet has been renovated and now includes various new Audi A8L, Mercedes-Benz S600 and A6s, although former prime minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero wanted to swap those cars for the hybrid Toyota Prius to save fuel oil. The President of Sri Lanka is driven in an armored Black Mercedes-Benz S-Class (Guard) or armored Black BMW 7 Series escorted by a selection of marked and unmarked President's Security Division vehicles. During official