The debate in parliament was closely watched on social networks, and the Podemos leader then made his opposition to the proposed government even more clear by leaping from his seat to congratulate a Catalan ally who also spoke against it with a bear-hug and a kiss on the lips.
That image, of Iglesias kissing the Catalan representative Xavier Domènech, was both celebrated and mocked in Twitter memes, as his supporters rejoiced at the sight of the two men kissing directly in front of deputies from the conservative People’s Party — which recently tried and failed to ban gay marriage in Spain — and his detractors evoked comparisons to Soviet-era kisses between the leaders of communist states.