Spain rejects talks offer from ETA and demands dissolution without conditions
Spain's government rejected an offer of talks from armed Basque separatists ETA and demanded the group dissolve itself without conditions, after ETA called for negotiations on prisoners and a weapons handover.
The group said on Saturday it was ready to discuss disbanding with France and Spain if certain conditions are met in a statement published on a Basque news site.
The ETA which last year said it had abandoned violence after a four-decade campaign for an independent homeland that claimed more than 800 lives, said one outstanding issue was the transfer of Basque prisoners to jails closer to home.
It wanted to discuss “formulas and timetables” to bring home prisoners and Basque political exiles; disarmament and the break-up of its armed structures; and the demobilisation of ETA members. The statement ran on Naiz.info, the website of the Basque newspaper Gara.
“The only statement we expect and demand is for its unconditional dissolution,” Interior Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz told reporters on Sunday. “They know we have not negotiated and won't negotiate at all with a terrorist organisation.”
ETA said in the statement successful talks on these areas “would bring about a definitive end of the armed conflict”.
Until Saturday's statement, the group had refused to announce its dissolution and disarmament, as demanded by Spain and France. But weakened by a series of arrests in France and Spain in recent years, ETA said on Saturday it was ready to “listen to and analyse” proposals from Madrid and Paris.
The two governments would have a “precise knowledge” of its positions, it added. In its statement ETA said the process it was proposing would allow for “the end of the armed confrontation”.
ETA has been placed on a list of terrorist organisations by the United States and the European Union and has been blamed for the deaths of 829 people. Its last attack on Spanish soil was in August 2009.
Suggested Stories
-
May 25th 2013
Gibraltar becomes 54th member of UEFA and will dispute the Euro Cup 2016
-
May 24th 2013
Brazil’s Rousseff one of the main speakers at the African Union 50 year celebration
-
May 24th 2013
British Overseas Territories tax havens hold £ 4 trillion, claims Oxfam
-
May 24th 2013
As the US before IMF lines up behind Argentina in the litigation with hedge funds
5 comments Feed
Note: Comments do not reflect MercoPress’ opinions. They are the personal view of our users. We wish to keep this as open and unregulated as possible. However, rude or foul language, discriminative comments (based on ethnicity, religion, gender, nationality, sexual orientation or the sort), spamming or any other offensive or inappropriate behaviour will not be tolerated. Please report any inadequate posts to the editor. Comments must be in English. Thank you.
Commenting for this story is now closed.
If you have a Facebook account, become a fan and comment on our Facebook Page!