Morale has been low, but electoral progress has dampened the momentum of even the most optimistic. agreement to find a Gibraltar joined the EU after the departure of the UK slipped through the hand. The colony’s chief minister, Fabián Picardo, on Tuesday assumed that was no longer possible, or at least not with this Government. “That is the legal and political reality”, have said. Just five weeks ago, I saw it as a “possibility.” The Mayor of La Línea, Juan Franco, has added to the pessimism: the tough policies of the PP government that Vox finally supports will jeopardize the signing of the Agreement that allows the destruction of the Gates and ensures the transit of people and goods between Rock and Cadiz. Seek the shared prosperity that the impoverished Cádiz region desperately needs.

There were nervous calls and panic on the negotiating team. Everyone is waiting. The conversations scheduled before Pedro Sánchez’s announcement are ongoing for now, but are also shrouded in pessimism. There is already talk of one possible “suspension & rdquo; from negotiations and what it means: that at some point the transition period granted to Gibraltar. And Spain, as guarantor of Europe’s Schengen area, will begin to exercise strict control at the Gate. As if it were one more EU external border. Nobody said they wanted that.

Nobody except, maybe, Vox. The most vocal party member on Gibraltar matters is the Cádiz deputy and retired general Agustín Rosety. Has convicted by the colony court for libelafter a series of messages on Twitter in which he called Fabián Picardo a “mafioso, protector smugglers and promoters of money laundering & rdquo;. Under the hashtag #GibraltarEspañol, he added: “Gibraltar is a hotbed of corruption, tax fraud and organized crime. Fabián Picardo played dumb and looked the other way. He benefited greatly from making the rock a sanctuary for criminals.”

In 2016, Santiago Abascal displayed the “200 meter flag on top of Gibraltar” as a feat, and requested that the party be supported to “reconquering the Rock & rdquor;. In the same year, the then popular Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel García-Margallo, assured: “I will plant the flag on Gibraltar and sooner than Piccardo & rdquor ;. He anticipates a negotiation process in 2017 to achieve “shared sovereignty”; Gibraltar between England and Spain, something Josep Piqué had tried years before, also to no avail.

Missed opportunity

According to sources familiar with the proposal put forward by Spain, it was a very generous offer that may never be repeated. It’s hard for them to visualize a deal if the Government is depending on Vox. And they emphasize that do not accept what was agreed missed opportunity for Gibraltar, would therefore gain unprecedented economic and political advantage in return for accepting very few demands from Spain: the presence of Spanish border officials was acceptable at ports and airports to control traffic of people and goods that will enter the Schenge areaN; rationalization of VAT on both sides of the border, to avoid dumping; or military coordination between those who are essentially allies within NATO, among other issues.

Other sources, however, indicate that moderate PPs are in favor of dialogue. Recall that former Minister of Foreign Affairs Popular Alfonso Dastis talks about the possibilities Brexit gives to bring down Gates to allow the depressed region of Campo de Gibraltar to prosper alongside the wealth that had amassed in the British colonies.

perpetual negotiation

Two years have passed since London and Madrid agreed to grant the British colony a grace period, something akin to continuing within the EU, even if their metropolis is no longer in the club. Relaxed controls on the border. They decided to negotiate a practical matter for Gibraltar to be within the Schengen area. For this, the secret is to exclude all references to sovereignty, tear down fences and let people flow (15,000 daily from side to side) and merchandise. Thirteen official rounds in the capitals of England, Spain or Brussels, and dozens more between technicians working out the details. Some problems seem to be solved. Others, the most difficult, proceed without a deal. Because everything reeks of sovereignty.

For example, co-management of Gibraltar airport is being negotiated. It is owned by the Royal Air Force (RAF). If AENA signed a concession agreement with Her Majesty’s Armed Forces, wouldn’t it indirectly acknowledge the sovereignty that Spain claims? That’s what some people fear. Another case, but from another side. If there’s a Spanish official, with a flag on his lapel and its regulatory weapons in harbors and airports, is London a fitting symbol of Spanish sovereignty?

Already in November, negotiations stalled, as this newspaper announced. A month later, Albares gave his British counterpart a sort of public ultimatum. They will have to decide whether to accept the proposal put forward by the EU or not and coordinate with Spain’s approval. Last May, the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, asked to speak to Pedro Sánchez. Both agreed on its importance close “as soon as possible” agreement on British colonial relations with the European Union. José Manuel Albares, Minister for Foreign Affairs, has warned that Gibraltar’s special situation cannot be extended “sine die”. In Batu they have carried out a simulation of what happened the day after the difficult “Gibrexit”, namely, that the controls appropriate to the borders were put in place: long lines of cars and people and the end of the porosity of the dividing line.

The image of the Spanish president Pedro Sánchez and the image of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, “destroying & rdquor; La Verja does not seem to materialize in this legislature. Even if within these months remaining before the start of the election campaign an agreement is reached, must be passed by the next executivethat came out of the polls on July 23.