MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Despite Gibraltar, Spain and UK enjoy 'excellent relations', says Rajoy
Spanish premier Mariano Rajoy has declared that the latest incursion into Gibraltar waters, that saw London call in his Ambassador on Tuesday, “can be clarified”, and highlighted that Britain and Spain continue to enjoy “excellent relations.” He hoped such incidents will not be repeated but admitted that Spain and UK have long held opposing positions on the question of Gibraltar. Read full article
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Disclaimer & comment rulesNo wonder the RG's are getting brave, when we do not even stand up to their colonial masters.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 01:12 am - Link - Report abuse 0He declared that “having a colony on European soil between two countries that are EU and NATO members is an anachronism in 2014.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 01:22 am - Link - Report abuse 0How about having Europeans on European soil..?.......wait a minute.....Doh!
Incidences such as those happening in Gibraltan waters only highlights how powerless Spain is.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 01:39 am - Link - Report abuse 0it seems the toothless uk has problems everywhere.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 01:49 am - Link - Report abuse 0now, guess without the help of daddy obama things will be a bit more difficult.
not to mention when scotland leaves that strange thing called united (lol) kingdom.
it will be the perfect time to give north ireland back to their real owners.
I always thought that Northern Ireland was owned by the people that lived there not those that live in Ireland.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 08:19 am - Link - Report abuse 0So far I have never seen any proof that a majority of people living in Northern Ireland want to be part of the Republic of Ireland.
spain is kerput.....riots ,unemployment, waitressing considered a top career
Apr 05th, 2014 - 08:37 am - Link - Report abuse 0As a Nigerian and an African I find it disgusting that Spain can keep colonies on the African continent ie ceuta and melila then have the audacity to open his big mouth an accuse another country of having colonies Spain should remove the beam from its own eyes first abandon its holier than thou attitude before it points a finger at another And while Spain is at it should also get out of Catalonia-disgraceful country
Apr 05th, 2014 - 08:44 am - Link - Report abuse 0Ceuta, Melilla and Canary Islands are not colonies. They aren't included in UN Non Self Governed Territories List. Equatorial Guinea and Western Sahara was included, and now don't territories under Spanish rule. Gibraltar is now a Non Self Governed Territory and Britain must start the decolonization process. In Gibraltar case, that includes bilateral talks with Spain and the goal of restoring Spanish territorial integrity.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 09:15 am - Link - Report abuse 0In Catalonia case, the international law is clear: the integrity of States is under the internal law in the democratics States. See please the case of Crimea and the appelations of Cameron, Hague and Lidington.
http://goo.gl/PXgyCu
Trust me we don't have “excellent relations”. Spain's actions in Gibraltar are not ones of a friend. If they want to act like a “bunch of dicks” we should play them at their own game. Extend Gibraltar territorial waters to their legal maximum, park a large Royal Navy warship conspicuosly in Algeciras waters and see how much they like it. Also next time a Spanish police launch comes into Gibraltar waters we should seize it and send the crew home wearing nothing but paper suits.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 09:36 am - Link - Report abuse 0When Madrid cries like a baby over us stealing their little boat it we'll remind them not to worry because we have “excellent relations”.
Caution about the game of dicks. Lidington, two days ago:
Apr 05th, 2014 - 09:51 am - Link - Report abuse 0“It is also important, however, that we seek to avoid a situation in which
Gibraltar ends up being worse off than it is at the moment. We went through a period, looking right back to the late `70s and early `80s, when the border was closed entirely. That would be worse for Gibraltar than the current situation. The facts of geography mean that it is relatively easy for Spain, if she were to be that maliciously intent, to squeeze Gibraltar more tightly, but we have to continue with a diplomatic approach...”
http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/foreign-affairs/Transcript%20for%20publication.pdf
Yes yes yes close the border again. Yawn! It worked so well last time. I'm sure the next time will have the Gibraltans seeing the error of their ways.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 01:02 pm - Link - Report abuse 0As for decolonisation, the UN has never said that it must involve Spain and never spoken about Spain's territorial integrity being disrupted. It recognises a sovereignty dispute but has never revoked the right to self-determination, which is what the above would entail.
Time for some new arguments, these ones have been rehashed thousands of times.
10. Well maybe the point is to confront the problem instead of ignoring it. Whatever the Spanish do to Gibraltar we can replicate by doing exactly the same to Spain. Maybe the problem has got to get worse before it gets better. This isn't a difficult problem to solve. We just need to make sure that Spain pays a price for being so provocative and we just keep escalating the price for each incursion. Personally I don't give a stuff if they close the border. Spain could try that on for size if they want to as long as they're aware that we could answer it by incorporating Gibraltar into the UK. I imagine it might upset a few people in Madrid if we closed the possibility of integration into mainland Spain forever. Friendly nations don't act the way that Spain acts. Let's stop hiding from the truth and wishing the problem wasn't there. Spain needs to pay a price for it's actions let's stop messing around and let's get on with the business of sending them the bill.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 01:08 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@8, 10. Best thing would be to obliterate Ceuta, Melilla, the Canary Islands, Majorca and Minorca with our nukes. Why is it that Spain can call these territories “autonomous territories” subserviant to the Spanish State, but Britain can't have self-governing British Overseas Territories? Let's forget the “excellent relations” and bomb/missile everything that might be a threat. Let's have a year where no Brits are allowed to visit Spain except “at their own risk”.
Apr 05th, 2014 - 05:24 pm - Link - Report abuse 0I don’t trust Mariano Rajoy
Apr 05th, 2014 - 07:37 pm - Link - Report abuse 0I don’t trust David Cameron
Or Nick Clegg
And I don’t trust David Lidington or labour,
And I don’t trust the unmighty conniving EU either,
Now some are suggesting that Gibraltar should consider more integration with the EU on its own,
Considered by none other than some Gibraltarian and British Politicians,
This may or may not be good news for the EU and some craft corrupt politicians,
And it may or may not be good for Spain, gaining power again,
But one things for certain,
It won’t be any good for the ordinary gibraltarian citizens…sold down the drain by corrupt politicians whose only interest is their own agender and big payrolls from big business,
Just my opinion.
.Britain would not block deeper EU integration for Gibraltar
http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=33536
What Rajoy needs to be very careful of here Morocco. They have been very clear in the past that any move on Gibraltar would be their cue to begin the repatriation of Cueta and Melilla.
Apr 06th, 2014 - 11:01 am - Link - Report abuse 0Their is also that small matter of the fleets of British aircraft that bring millions of British holiday makers into the country every year, spending millions and millions of Euros there. The foreign office have said previously that if we wanted to really hurt Spain we could do it, but this woukd be counter productive at the present time.
There will be a line that Spain is approaching and will have to cross before we really start to bring serious pressure to bear. I don't think a few power boat incursions will start this process.
@14 Thanks for the list of people you don't trust. Will you be picking up your assault rifle and camos and heading for Gibraltar? It is, of course, nice that you don't trust the criminal Rajoy. Any suggestions about what should be DONE?
Apr 06th, 2014 - 03:30 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@15 “I don't think a few power boat incursions will start this process.” I don't think those “survey” vessels are “power boats”. If you take the time to research the details of the spanish state vessels that have illegally entered BGTW (British Gibraltar Territorial Waters), you'll find few that could be classified as “power boats”. Warlike as it might seem, mines might have an effect. Why aren't HMS Sabre and HMS Scimitar fitted with torpedo tubes? The destroyers and frigates that go down to the Falklands have torpedo tubes. Why aren't there regular missile tests? There are missile tests in the Falklands. Why don't we secretly ship breeding pairs of macaques to spain. Indistinguishable from spaniards but more intelligent. Also thieving and vicious. Just like spaniards. Guardia Civil uniforms are just made for them!
Still, you have to give spaniards credit. They are working hard to be just as scummy as argies. But the spanish will never manage to be as scummy as argies. The spanish won't ever manage to gather together a continent of crass imbeciles to support them.
these imbeciles talking about torpedoes, warships, invasions, etc are so funny.
Apr 06th, 2014 - 05:30 pm - Link - Report abuse 0they must be the typical keyboard-warrior.
you know, a tiny little man, who still lives with his mother, trying to play the brave guy cause nobody can watch him.
nothing more pathetic.
17. As opposed to what? Maybe those nancy boy poofters prancing around British waters in a Spanish Civil Guard Speedboat? They're just pretend Policemen. It's like the international equivilant of “Rat a Tat Ginger!” Spain is just so childish! But then what can you expect from a 3rd rate civilisation.
Apr 06th, 2014 - 06:44 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Any suggestions about what should be DONE?
Apr 06th, 2014 - 07:04 pm - Link - Report abuse 0,,,,
Hung up side down like Mussolini .perhaps..
.
@8 Asdrúbal el Bello
Apr 06th, 2014 - 07:59 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Regarding the decolonisation process - UN Resolution 1514 - Paragraph 6 - cannot be used to justify territorial claims as Spain and Argentina do, it is not it's purpose.
“6. Any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.”
'Self-determination versus territorial integrity
...A number of states have laid claim to territories, which they allege were removed from them as a result of colonialism. This is justified by reference to Paragraph 6 of UN Resolution 1514(XV), which states that any attempt “aimed at partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the Charter”. This, it is claimed, applies to situations where the territorial integrity of a state had been disrupted by colonisation, so that the people of a territory subject to a historic territorial claim are prevented from exercising a right to self-determination. This interpretation is rejected by many states, who argue that Paragraph 2 of UN Resolution 1514(XV) states that “all peoples have the right to self-determination” and Paragraph 6 cannot be used to justify territorial claims. The original purpose of Paragraph 6 was “to ensure that acts of self-determination occur within the established boundaries of colonies, rather than within sub-regions”. Further, the use of the word attempt in Paragraph 6 denotes future action and cannot be construed to justify territorial redress for past action.[50] An attempt sponsored by Spain and Argentina to qualify the right to self-determination in cases where there was a territorial dispute was rejected by the UN General Assembly, which re-iterated the right to self-determination was a universal right.'
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-determination
What should be done is reciprocation. For every incident of Spanish provocation there should be a price the Spanish pay. It's pavlovian theory if you like. If you electrocute the dog every time it eats pretty damn soon it stops eating. You could start by incrementally ejecting Spanish diplomats out of London and Spanish Military out of UK bases. You could police the crap out of spanish trawlermen, you could hold a cabinet meeting in Gibraltar. There are many,many things you could do which would aggravate Spain our leaders just need to have the courage to try them. At the moment Spain wont stop it's boat incursions or it's border delays because they're having fun. Lack of action by the UK leads them to believe that we're weak and that they're strong when the reverse is the actual truth. Ultimately they'll keep pushing until they push it one inch too far and then reality will be bite and they'll wonder what the hell happened. Better for them and for us if they learn to behave sooner rather than later. However until Spain can control itself shall we stop the hypocrisy of pretending we're friends when we're obviously not.
Apr 07th, 2014 - 06:16 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Commenting for this story is now closed.
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