June 1 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, on her first official visit to Madrid, clashed with Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Moratinos over Spain's dialogue with Fidel Castro's government in Cuba.

``I have real doubts about the value of engagement with a regime that is anti-democratic and appears to be trying to arrange the transition from one anti-democratic regime to the next anti-democratic regime,'' Rice said at a joint news conference today. ``Spain has a different view.''

Moratinos visited Cuba in April and met only with government officials, declining to see opposition figures, piquing the U.S. government. Castro, who has been ill and hasn't been seen in public for months, ceded governing authority to his brother Raul during his convalescence. The U.S., which backs members of the opposition, severed diplomatic ties with Cuba in 1961. The island nation off the Florida coast is a former Spanish colony.

U.S.-Spanish relations, strong under the former premier, Jose Maria Aznar, chilled with the election in 2004 of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, whose campaign was bolstered by his opposition to the Iraq war. Upon election, he abruptly withdrew nearly 1,000 Spanish troops from Iraq.

Moratinos emphasized that Spain's relationship with Castro is also geared toward ensuring a transition to democracy. Spain's diplomatic presence in Havana allows it to maintain more contact with Cuban dissidents than the U.S. has, he added.

``I'm sure that in time she'll be convinced that the Spanish strategy will produce results,'' Moratinos said.

Rice smirked in response and mouthed to reporters who traveled with her from the U.S., ``Don't hold your breath.''

NATO Contribution

Rice called on Moratinos to increase Spain's contribution to NATO forces in Afghanistan, where the U.S. led a military campaign in 2001 to remove the Taliban regime. Spain has about 690 troops in the country and Zapatero said in March he wouldn't send reinforcements.

``I've been asking everybody to do more for our mission in Afghanistan,'' Rice said.

Spanish officials have noted the delay in Rice's arrival -- it is the 63rd country she has visited as the U.S.'s top diplomat.

Rice, who was to spend six hours in Spain before returning to Washington, shrugged off the notion that she had been ignoring the NATO ally, telling journalists on board her flight to Spain that she had intended to visit earlier this year and was compelled to cancel because of congressional testimony.

Rice was meeting with King Juan Carlos, Zapatero, Moratinos and the Spanish opposition People Party's leader, Mariano Rajoy.

To contact the reporters on this story: Janine Zacharia in Madrid at jzacharia@bloomberg.net; Ben Sills in Madrid at bsills@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: June 1, 2007 11:56 EDT