Spain and UK at each other's throat over Gibraltar

[Vikrant]

...

Reports in the Spanish media have suggested the row could escalate to the United Nations, with Madrid floating the idea of Spain and Argentina presenting a "united front" over Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands.

Argentina is currently a non-permanent member of the UN's Security Council and could use its position to add Gibraltar to its agenda. Its president, Cristina Kirchner, has already renewed demands for talks over the sovereignty of the Falklands.

Meanwhile, thousands of Royal Navy personnel set sail yesterday for a long-scheduled training exercise in the Mediterranean. The Ministry of Defence stressed the timing was coincidental, but Boris Johnson, the London Mayor, said the deployment should send a clear signal to the Spanish.

...

Gibraltar tensions soar as UK threatens legal action over border checks and Navy sets sail for Med - UK Politics - UK - The Independent

 

[percysunshine]

Nothing will happen. Both countries are too broke to afford bullets.

 

[Jos]

Rajoy Is pleased, his corruption scandal is no longer on the front page every day.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_Bárcenas

"patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel"

 

[Bleipriester]

Oh yes, the UK sends warships to Gibraltar. That proves how skin-deep the Union is...

 

[Swagger]

Oh yes, the UK sends warships to Gibraltar. That proves how skin-deep the Union is...

It's the only language those damned dagos understand!

 

[Vikrant]

It has been part of Spain till it was forcefully taken away from them. It is going to be a major bone of contention. I think UK should return Gibraltar to Spain for the sake of peace and harmony in Europe.

 

[percysunshine]

So they lost it in a war 400 years ago. Big deal. The Gibraltans want the UK, not Spain. They have a right to choose the least broke country.

 

[Vikrant]

^ Just curious. Why do you want to break the EU?

 

[Vikrant]

^ It does not have to be under German control. It can be under indirect control of the U.S. through some sort of proxy.

 

[percysunshine]

Nothing will happen. Both countries are too broke to afford bullets.

Bullets are overrated!!
Brit Squaddies are very fond of their bayonets.
Including the locals in the Royal Regt of Gibraltar.

Wouldn't it be pleasant if this was the catalyst for an EU breakup?

So what would the scenario be? Spain, with EU backing, invades and occupies Gibraltar?

 

[Vikrant]

It seems like both sides are going to fight it out in the court. UK spokespeople keep mentioning taking unprecedented legal action against Spain. What would be the venue? Will it be EU Court of Justice?

 

[waltky]

Yea, an' dey oughta sue dat insurance company fer infringement of copywrite...

Britain threatens legal action over Gibraltar
August 12, 2013 — In an escalating spat with Spain over Gibraltar, the tiny British-ruled promontory at the tip of the Iberian peninsula, Britain is considering legal action to confirm its sovereignty over the territory known as The Rock.

A spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron told reporters Monday that the British leader was disappointed following talks last week with his Spanish counterpart, Mariano Rajoy, and diplomatic exchanges between the two countries’ foreign ministers. According to reports of the daily briefing to parliamentary correspondents, Cameron was “disappointed by the failure of the Spanish to remove the additional border checks this weekend, and we are now considering what legal action is open to us. This would be an unprecedented step; we want to consider it carefully before making a decision to pursue.”

The row has resuscitated long-standing rancor over what many Spaniards see as a vestige of colonialism, though British sovereignty was recognized by the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht. The current clash was sparked by the British decision to place concrete blocks off the coast of Gibraltar to protect fishing reserves from the Spanish practice of trawling the sea floor, prompting Spanish outrage. The Spanish government responded with assiduous border checks at the Gibraltar-Spain frontier causing hours of traffic jams for commuters and visitors between the two territories and a proposal to charge an entry tariff to Gibraltar equivalent to $66. The dispute has continued over the past week despite the high-level talks, to the point where Britain is threatening legal action possibly through the United Nations or the European Union, of which both countries are members.

Spanish authorities for their part reportedly talk of raising the question at an impending visit to Argentina by Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo, where the issue could be united to the Argentine claim over the British-ruled Falkland Islands, according to Spanish newspapers Monday. Meanwhile, British warships left the southern English ports of Portsmouth and Plymouth on Monday bound for military exercises in the Mediterranean. Although the maneuvers were planned long ago with the agreement of both governments, the convoy will be seen as a symbolic statement of sovereignty as they pass by Gibraltar with one of them docking in the harbor.

Britain threatens legal action over Gibraltar - Europe - Stripes

See also:

UK, Spain trade threats as Gibraltar row heats up
Wed, Aug 14, 2013 -The row between Britain and Spain over Gibraltar went up a notch on Monday as London mulled legal action over “totally disproportionate” border checks and Madrid threatened to turn to the UN.

As the threats were made over the British-held territory, British warships began setting sail for the Mediterranean for a naval exercise that will see the frigate HMS Westminster dock in Gibraltar. Helicopter carrier HMS Illustrious steamed out of Portsmouth, to be followed yesterday by the type-23 frigate Westminster, which is set to arrive in Gibraltar within a week. The British Ministry of Defence has stressed that the deployment of the ships for the exercise is “routine” and “long planned.” However, in a hardening of Britain’s tone, a spokesman for British Prime Minister David Cameron said the government was considering taking legal action over the checks by Spanish guards on the border of the rocky outpost on Spain’s south coast.

The spokesman said the checks, which have caused tailbacks of several hours for people trying to cross the border, were “politically motivated and totally disproportionate.” “Clearly the prime minister is disappointed by the failure of Spain to remove the additional border checks this weekend. We are now considering what legal action is open to us,” the spokesman said, adding that Britain was considering whether to take “unprecedented” action against a fellow EU member. “If we go down this route, we will certainly press the EU to pursue the case as a matter of urgency,” he added. Spain has refused to stop the checks, which it said were “legal and proportionate.” Ignacio Ibanez, director general for foreign affairs at Spain’s foreign ministry, said the legal threat was causing little concern. “We are not worried because we are convinced about what we are doing and we know that the right is on our side,” Ibanez told BBC Radio 4.

The threat from London came after Spain said it was considering taking the row over the disputed territory to global bodies such as the UN and the International Court of Justice in The Hague. A foreign ministry spokesman said Madrid was “evaluating the possibility of going to bodies like United Nations [or] the Security Council, the court in The Hague.” However, he said that “no decision has been taken” on the possible course of action. In a potential headache for the UK, Spain is considering forming a united front with Argentina, which is embroiled in its own dispute with Britain over the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands, or Las Malvinas as they are known in Spanish.

The government of Gibraltar has accused Madrid of acting in retaliation after it built an artificial concrete reef which it says is aimed at boosting fish stocks, but that Spain says is designed to keep out Spanish fishing boats. Writing in the Sun newspaper on Monday, UK Minister of State for Europe David Lidington said: “Britain and Spain matter to each other. We are NATO allies, key trading partners, and millions of Brits travel to Spain every year." “But our good friendship with Spain does not mean we will turn a blind eye when the people of Gibraltar are threatened or put under pressure,” he wrote.

UK, Spain trade threats as Gibraltar row heats up - Taipei Times

 

[Bleipriester]

Oh yes, the UK sends warships to Gibraltar. That proves how skin-deep the Union is...

It's the only language those damned dagos understand!

But we all know: Nothing will happen. Or will they sink the Spanish fishing boats?

 

[Vikrant]

Wow, it looks like they are going to The International Court of Justice aka The Hague. That will be high profile for sure.

I think it will be a just move for UK to relinquish the control of Las Malvinas and Gibraltar to Argentina and Spain respectively.

 

[waltky]

Cameron calls in the European Commission to monitor Gibraltar spat...

UK calls for EC Gibraltar monitors
Sun, Aug 18, 2013 - British Prime Minister David Cameron has urged the president of the European Commission (EC) to dispatch a monitoring team to the border between Spain and Gibraltar, where increased checks imposed by Spanish authorities have been at the center of a diplomatic spat.

In a telephone call to European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, the UK prime minister underlined Britain’s belief that the additional checks were “politically motivated and disproportionate,” and contrary to the EU right of free movement as a result. He said Britain was now actively considering legal action and had begun collating evidence on the “sporadic nature of the measures” which would prove they were illegitimate. Political tensions in the region flared after the British territory began work on a concrete reef in the Mediterranean, which Spain claims will destroy fishing in the area. Spain’s increased border controls have led to delays of several hours for those traveling to and from the British overseas territory.

The European Commission had previously said that it planned to send a team of monitors to Gibraltar next month to check whether Spain was breaking EU rules on frontier controls, but on Friday a Downing Street spokesman said Cameron had asked Barroso to ensure it was sent “urgently.” The spokesman said: “The prime minister emphasized that the commission has a responsibility to do this as part of its role overseeing the application of union law. President Barroso responded that the European Commission are closely monitoring the situation and that, following a thorough legal assessment, they would not hesitate to take any measures necessary to uphold EU law.”

The Downing Street spokesman added that Nick Clegg, the British deputy prime minister, who speaks Spanish, was due to call his Spanish counterpart, Soraya Saenz de Santamaria, later yesterday to reiterate Britain’s concerns. He would be pressing for a way to de-escalate the issue. Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said yesterday that Spanish people living around Gibraltar support the British territory rather than their own government in the latest row over border controls. Picardo said that he was in frequent “fluid” contact with local politicians in the Spanish border town of La Linea and other areas where the more than 4,000 Spaniards who work in the peninsula live.

Blaming the problems on the government in Madrid, he said locals were supportive of Gibraltar as an “economic engine” and wanted to see an easing of the border restrictions. Picardo also warned that the fluctuating blockade could directly impact on the already struggling Spanish economy if it went on too long, with construction jobs that would normally go to Iberian workers being awarded elsewhere. “I have no contact with Madrid, but I have a lot of fluid contact with mayors in La Linea and others municipalities in the area who are very concerned about the effect the controls being imposed by Madrid could have on the working lives of people who come in and out of Gibraltar every day,” he said.

UK calls for EC Gibraltar monitors - Taipei Times

 

[Saigon]

It has been part of Spain till it was forcefully taken away from them. It is going to be a major bone of contention. I think UK should return Gibraltar to Spain for the sake of peace and harmony in Europe.

And what year was it "taken away from them"?

I assume from this that you would also support the 'return' of Kashmir to Pakistan, of Taiwan to China or Alsace-Lorraine?

 

[Saigon]

^ Just curious. Why do you want to break the EU?

Break up the EU.

It's a Totalitarian unelected anti freedom organization.
It is unworkable, fiscally and morally bankrupt and is essentially what the nazis wanted.
A united Europe under German control.

That is very, very funny....great posting!

And to think we only imagined those MEP elections?!

 

[freedombecki]

Wow. Two countries I love getting ready to fight each other.

I hope they settle their differences in a fair way in which everybody benefits and no one gets hurt.

 

[Beria]

I thought that the days of gunboat deplomacy were over ?

 

[Vikrant]

It has been part of Spain till it was forcefully taken away from them. It is going to be a major bone of contention. I think UK should return Gibraltar to Spain for the sake of peace and harmony in Europe.

And what year was it "taken away from them"?

I assume from this that you would also support the 'return' of Kashmir to Pakistan, of Taiwan to China or Alsace-Lorraine?

China should be returned to Taiwan.

Kashmir has been part of India for thousands of years. The illegal occupation of parts of Kashmir by Pakistan and China should however end.

Anyway, this thread is about Gibraltar crisis not Kashmir or Taiwan crisis. Start another thread to discuss that.