BRUSSELS PROCESS TALKS ON GIBRALTAR
FOREIGN SECRETARY:
The Foreign Ministers of Britain and Spain held a meeting in London
on 10 December, the 11th formal session of the Brussels process, to
discuss Gibraltar. The talks took place in a friendly and
constructive atmosphere. The Spanish set out their ideas of a
general outline for a legal, political and economic framework for
Gibraltar including sovereignty issues. The British side listened
carefully to the Spanish presentation and recalled its commitment
to respect the wishes of the people of Gibraltar as enshrined in
the preamble to the 1969 constitution. It was agreed that the
coordinators of the Brussels process would meet to carry forward
their work. Under discussion as well as the Spanish ideas would be
any proposals from the Gibraltarians together with British
proposals for increased economic cooperation.
QUESTION:
Could the Foreign Ministers please give a message for the people of
Gibraltar, the heroes of the longstanding Gibraltar problem?
FOREIGN SECRETARY:
For Britain there can be no compromise on the principle of
sovereignty against the wishes of the people of Gibraltar and I
have repeatedly expressed the view that it is important that the
people of Gibraltar should never again be put under siege and that
we should try and build a positive relationship. That is why, as
part of the process, Britain would wish to table proposals that
will assist in economic cooperation and help in building confidence
and trust.
MR MATUTES:
The question of Gibraltar has now been outstanding for many years
and over that period it has been tackled in various instances
including the United Nations. In all proposals for a solution to
this, Spain and the United Kingdom have been urged to tackle the
question of decolonisation on the basis of the principle of the
territorial integrity of states. In this process decolonisation is
the primary consideration.
For Spain, it has always been of the greatest importance to take
account of and indeed to satisfy the rights of the people of
Gibraltar in such a manner that Spain does not dispute the right of
Gibraltarians to be British or to be Spanish, if they wish to be
Spanish, or to enjoy both nationalities simultaneously if that is
their preference. Neither does Spain dispute the right of
Gibraltar to enjoy the fiscal and customs advantages that it
currently enjoys. We hope to offer an opportunity to the
Gibraltarian people to plan their future prosperity on a reasonable
and hopeful basis and that is precisely the reason why we have made
these proposals.
QUESTION:
After the recent comings and goings over the integration of Spain
into the military structure of NATO, will you be able to state that
Britain has not a strategic self-interest in Gibraltar as Peter
Brooke stated about Northern Ireland in years gone by?
MR MATUTES:
The question for me is do we accept Gibraltar as a financial
offshore centre? My answer is clearly yes under the rules and the
directives of the European Union, which of course demand more
transparency in the way to deal with the centres but the offshore
status is clearly accepted by Spain in this proposal.
FOREIGN SECRETARY:
Tonight was a discussion on the Brussels process which arises from
an agreement made by the previous Conservative Government in the
1980s. It relates to the political and constitutional status of
Gibraltar and the NATO issues therefore are separate from it.
However, to respond to your question, Gibraltar is a valuable
military asset for Britain and therefore to NATO. However, what
motivates the British Government in its approach to Gibraltar is
our respect for the democratic wishes of the people of Gibraltar
and it is fulfilling our duty to them that is the national interest
of Britain, in respecting their wishes we discharge our national
interest.
ENDS
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