The Spanish dictator Francisco Franco owed much to Adolf Hitler,
German forces had been of particular value to him during the
Spanish civil war. Yet he was in no rush to automatically line
up with another Fascist dictator. Whether he demanded too much
from Hitler, wanted to play a waiting game to see which way the
war turned, or really wished to avoid involvement in the war,
given the shattered state of Spain following the civil war is
subject to much debate. He was a difficult man to pin down.
Famously Hitler is alleged to have said that he would “rather
have three or four teeth pulled” than go through another meeting
with him. During the early part of the war Spain offered some
practical support to Germany but as the tide turned Franco
shifted his allegiances. German newsreel of the meeting: