Britain warned Spain it might take legal action to try to force Madrid to abandon tighter controls at the border with the contested British overseas territory of Gibraltar in what it called an unprecedented step against a European ally.
Spanish Foreign minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo will be visiting Argentina next September to meet with his peer Hector Timerman to discuss the Gibraltar and Falklands/Malvinas sovereignty disputes and consider the possibility of a joint front.
The Foreign office and the Gibraltar government confirmed they are collecting a dossier on politically motivated queues at the Spain/Gibraltar border with a view to making a formal complaint to the European Commission.
Leading Gibraltar and Spain’s Campo unions - Unite the Union, Comissiones Obreras (CCOO), and Union General de Trabajadores (UGT) - have jointly released a statement and manifesto urging good neighbourly relations. The states that any diplomatic scuffle and/or show of strength by one or all of parties involved has immediate and negative consequences for the people who live on either side of the border.
Gibraltar Government House issued a statement following Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and PM David Cameron exchange and later intervention of foreign ministers Garcia-Margallo and William Hague to find a way to de-escalate the situation by reducing measures at the Gib/Spain border.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague spoke on Wednesday to his Spanish peer Jose Garcia Margallo with the commitment of finding a diplomatic solution to the dispute at the Spain/Gibraltar border.
Former UK Europe Minister Peter Hain has said that the failure to recognise Spain’s historic claim over the Rock is the root of the issues Gibraltar has with its neighbours. Hain made his comments during an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
The Falkland Islands sent on Wednesday a support message to Chief Minister Fabian Picardo and the people of Gibraltar which is under strong pressure and threats from Spain over border crossings while from London it was reported that PM David Cameron called Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy to raise concerns about the escalation of the situation.
Spain’s main police union SUP has expressed concern to the central government that it will need support if its members are required to carry out extensive checks on people entering or leaving the Rock.
Prime Minister David Cameron is “seriously concerned” about the escalation of tensions at the Spanish-Gibraltar border. Spain has said it is considering a range of proposals including a new 50 Euro (£43) fee to cross the border with the British territory.