With the triumph on Sunday in Greece of the Syriza anti austerity party, Spain's version, Podemos under the leadership of Pablo Iglesias, and ahead in the opinion polls for the next national election, celebrated and addressed the issue of Gibraltar saying relations between the Rock and neighboring La Línea should not fall victim to political opportunism.
Had it not been for the 1982 Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands, and the war that followed, Spain would have achieved through negotiations an 'irreversible solution' to the Gibraltar dispute with Great Britain, revealed Spanish diplomat, scholar and academic Jose Cuenca in his recently launched book, “From Adolfo Suarez to Gorbachev; an ambassador's testimonies and shared secrets”.
Jorge Domecq, the senior Spanish diplomat who headed the Gibraltar desk at the Spanish Foreign Ministry including during the Tripartite Forum period, has been appointed as the next European Defense Agency Chief Executive. This comes as a result of a selection process which started last December.
Spain tried to persuade US politicians to drop an initiative calling for the House of Representatives in Washington to formally recognize Gibraltar’s right to self-determination. The plea was contained in a letter from Spain’s ambassador to Washington, Ramon Gil-Casares, to Republican Congressman George Holding, who sponsored the bi-partisan resolution.
Gibraltar MEP Ashley Fox was elected this week leader of the British Conservative delegation in the European Parliament, reports the Gibraltar Chronicle.
Millions of Catalans voted on Sunday in a symbolic referendum on independence from Spain that supporters hope will propel the issue further despite opposition from Madrid.
Venezuela recalled its ambassador to Spain to protest interventionist declarations made by Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, the Venezuelan News Agency (AVN) said on Tuesday.
King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia on Wednesday welcomed Chilean President Michelle Bachelet at the start of her official visit to Spain, expected to center on economic cooperation.
With senior members of his own Popular Party among the dozens of Spaniards facing charges of corruption and bribery, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy apologized to the Senate for appointing to public office some individuals who were not “worthy” of it.
Spanish Foreign Ministry briefings to media designed to reinforce Spain’s assertion that the Tripartite Talks are dead were challenged this weekend by the UK Government. In an unusual move Simon Manley, the British Ambassador to Spain, wrote to El Pais to correct their report which suggested that the ad hoc talks were a new phase of dialogue replacing the tripartite talks and that UK had changed its position on talks.