Spain will not risk a Brexit deal by making Gibraltar’s sovereignty a condition in the talks, the country’s Foreign Minister said in an interview on Sunday. Speaking to the conservative newspaper ABC, Alfonso Dastis said Spain would not accept any agreement that undermined its position on Gibraltar, but would not use the Brexit talks to push its sovereignty aspirations over the Rock.
Spain's economy grew by 0.9% in the second quarter thanks to improved exports and household spending. The growth figure, a first estimate from the National Statistics Institute (INE), suggests the country's economy has finally grown back to the size it was before the credit crunch of 2008.
Gibraltar will continue to grow in a post-Brexit world and Spain should not create obstacles to cross-border cooperation that will generate jobs and wealth for the region, Chief Minister Fabian Picardo told a seminar in the neighboring town of San Roque in Andalucía.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has told the country’s National Court he did not know anything about the ruling Partido Popular’s accounting practices when a corrupt scheme allegedly helped fund it. Wednesday’s highly-anticipated hearing was the first time that a prime minister has appeared in court while holding office since Spain transitioned to democracy four decades ago.
Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alfonso Dastis, will visit the Campo de Gibraltar in September to discuss the impact of Brexit on cross-border workers and the wider region. The forthcoming visit was announced late Thursday night following a meeting in Madrid between the minister and officials from the Campo.
The election of Emmanuel Macron as president has helped propel France to the top of a league table of global “soft power”, while Britain’s score has decreased partly as a result of Brexit. But despite losing points for government stability, enterprise and favorability measured in worldwide polls, the UK hung on to second slot, thanks to the US tumbling from first to third following the election of Donald Trump.
The Queen appears to have acknowledged the thorny issue of Gibraltar in a speech at the King of Spain’s state banquet. In what is likely to be interpreted as a reference to the dispute between Britain and Spain over Gibraltar’s sovereignty, the Queen said the two countries did not always see “eye to eye”.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May did not raise the issue of Gibraltar’s sovereignty during her meeting with the king of Spain despite the two countries not seeing “eye to eye” on the issue, Downing Street said on Thursday. A Number 10 spokeswoman said the Gibraltar “didn’t come up” and insisted Spain is “well aware” of Britain’s position that the Rock’s future is not up for discussion.
The comment about Gibraltar made by the King of Spain in his address in Westminster Hall places the focus on bilateral dialogue between London and Madrid as the way forward to address Spain's differences with the UK over the Decolonization of Gibraltar.
A flag of Gibraltar (and Falkland Islands) was on display outside the Houses of Parliament as King Felipe of Spain arrived in London for his state visit. The red-and-white banner, bearing a red castle and golden key, was placed at the centre of a row of flags of the British overseas territories and dependencies in Parliament Square.