 In 1939 when Francisco Franco took power in Spain, Mexico severed diplomatic relations between the two nations.After the war, thousands of Spanish refugees sought asylum in Mexico and former Mexican consul in Marseille, France, Gilberto Bosques Saldívar, issued thousands of visas to Spanish refugees and other asylees to seek refuge in Mexico.Though the Republicans had lost the war, this helped improve the relationship between the two countries after the death of Franco.