Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
, mapsize =
, image_map2 = Gib ...
, a
British Overseas Territory
The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remna ...
, located at the southern tip of the
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
, is the subject of a territorial claim by
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
. It was
captured in 1704 during the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
(1701–1714). The
Spanish Crown
, coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg
, coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain
, image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg
, incumbent = Felipe VI
, incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...
formally ceded the territory in
perpetuity
A perpetuity is an annuity that has no end, or a stream of cash payments that continues forever. There are few actual perpetuities in existence. For example, the United Kingdom (UK) government issued them in the past; these were known as conso ...
to the
British Crown
The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories, overseas territories, Provinces and territorie ...
in 1713, under
Article X of the
Treaty of Utrecht
The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne o ...
. Spain later attempted to recapture the territory during the
thirteenth siege (1727) and the
Great Siege (1779–1783). British sovereignty over Gibraltar was confirmed in later treaties signed in
Seville (1729) and the
Treaty of Paris (1783)
The Treaty of Paris, signed in Paris by representatives of George III, King George III of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and representatives of the United States, United States of America on September 3, 1783, officially ended the Ame ...
.
Reclamation of the territory became government policy under the regime of the dictator
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...
and has remained in place under successive governments following the
Spanish transition to democracy
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
. The
Gibraltarians
The Gibraltarians (Spanish: ''gibraltareños'', colloquially: '' llanitos'') are an ethnic group native to Gibraltar, a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance to the Mediterran ...
themselves reject any such claim and no
political party or pressure group in Gibraltar supports union with Spain. In a
referendum in 2002 the people of Gibraltar rejected a joint sovereignty proposal on which Spain and the United Kingdom were said to have reached "broad agreement". The British Government now refuses to discuss sovereignty without the consent of the Gibraltarians.
In 2000, a political declaration of unity was signed by the members of the
Gibraltar Parliament
The Gibraltar Parliament is the legislature of the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. Between 1969 and 2006, it was called the Gibraltar House of Assembly.
Functions
The House of Assembly, set up under the 1969 constitution, was a uni ...
; according to the Gibraltar government, "In essence the declaration stated that the people of Gibraltar will never compromise, give up or trade their sovereignty or their right to
self-determination
The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a ''jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It stat ...
; that Gibraltar wants good, neighbourly, European relations with Spain; and that Gibraltar belongs to the people of Gibraltar and is neither Spain's to claim or Britain's to give away."
Spain insists on a bilateral agreement with the UK over sovereignty, whereas the UK will only discuss sovereignty if Gibraltar is included in the discussions.
The
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
understanding of the positions of each party is set out in their 2016 report. The UN currently lists Gibraltar as a
Non-Self-Governing Territory.
Capture of Gibraltar and the Treaty of Utrecht
![Rooke 1704](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Rooke_1704.jpg)
Gibraltar was
captured in 1704 by a force led by Admiral Sir
George Rooke
Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Rooke (1650 – 24 January 1709) was an English naval officer. As a junior officer he saw action at the Battle of Solebay and again at the Battle of Schooneveld during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. As a captain, ...
representing the
Grand Alliance on behalf of the
Archduke Charles
Archduke Charles Louis John Joseph Laurentius of Austria, Duke of Teschen (german: link=no, Erzherzog Karl Ludwig Johann Josef Lorenz von Österreich, Herzog von Teschen; 5 September 177130 April 1847) was an Austrian field-marshal, the third s ...
, pretender to the Spanish Throne. After the battle, almost all of the inhabitants decided to leave. Spanish attempts to regain the territory in the
Twelfth Siege of Gibraltar failed, and it was eventually ceded to the
Kingdom of Great Britain
The Kingdom of Great Britain (officially Great Britain) was a Sovereign state, sovereign country in Western Europe from 1 May 1707 to the end of 31 December 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of ...
by Spain in the 1713
Treaty of Utrecht
The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne o ...
as part of the settlement of the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
. In that treaty, Spain ceded to Great Britain "the full and entire propriety of the town and castle of Gibraltar, together with the port, fortifications, and forts thereunto belonging ... for ever, without any exception or impediment whatsoever."
Should the
British Crown
The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories, overseas territories, Provinces and territorie ...
ever wish to relinquish Gibraltar, a reversion clause holds that the territory would first be offered to Spain, "And in case it shall hereafter seem meet to the Crown of Great Britain to grant, sell or by any means to alienate therefrom the propriety of the said town of Gibraltar, it is hereby agreed and concluded that the preference of having the sale shall always be given to the Crown of Spain before any others."
Furthermore, the Treaty stipulates "that the above-named propriety be yielded to Great Britain ''without any territorial jurisdiction'', and without any open communication by land with the country round about" (although there is dispute over whether this disclaims territorial jurisdiction over Gibraltar, or over the "country round about") and that no overland trade between Gibraltar and Spain is to take place, except for emergency provisions in the case that Gibraltar is unable to be resupplied by sea. The British Government and the Government of Gibraltar have argued that the membership of both Gibraltar and Spain in the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
(EU) — Gibraltar was included as a
Special member state territory when the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
joined the EU in 1973; Spain joined the EU in 1986 – superseded such restrictions as the EU is committed to free movement of goods and services. The
effect of Brexit on Gibraltar
The effect of Brexit on Gibraltar concerns the status of Gibraltar after withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union. The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020 after having voted to leave in the 2016 referendum and formally notified the ...
is unclear.
Differing positions
The United Nations regards Gibraltar as a
Non-Self-Governing Territory administered by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Its report of February 2016 sets out the differing views of the various parties relating to Gibraltar.
The ''Gibraltar Constitution Order 2006'' (UK) established a form of government for Gibraltar, with the Governor of Gibraltar being responsible for the conduct of external affairs, defence, internal security and for certain appointments to public office, and the Government of Gibraltar having responsible for all other matters. The UK believes that as an independent territory, recognised by the United Nations, Gibraltar enjoys the individual and collective rights that are set out in the 2006 constitution and the right of self-determination.
Spain disputes the legality of the 2006 constitution and claims that it does not change the status of Gibraltar as a British colony with only the UK having right to discuss Gibraltar matters at the international level.
[
The territorial government of Gibraltar, based on law in the 2006 constitution, collects its own taxes and budgets its costs and capital expenditure, with maximum personal tax rates of 28% and company tax of 10%. Spain notes that the European Commission is investigating the tax regime of Gibraltar and that Spain considers Gibraltar a tax haven. The UK believes Gibraltar meets all EU laws relating to anti-money-laundering, direct taxation and financial supervision.][
Gibraltar has a robust financial regulation system with anti-tax-evasion agreements including exchange of tax information agreements with 79 countries including all the EU countries,] except Spain which has not responded. The UK asked for Gibraltar to be subject to an EU evaluation of its anti-money-laundering controls. Spain recalls that crimes of tobacco smuggling and money-laundering from Gibraltar had been noted in an EU anti fraud report in 2014.[
Crossing the land border between Gibraltar and Spain is subject to checks. Spain stresses that checks are not politically motivated, it being necessary to ensure strict compliance with EU border regulations to counter the common illicit trafficking issues and that Spain complies with the recommendations from the EU to improve the border crossing. The location of the checkpoint does not conform to the border recognised by Spain. The airport is a military area where civilian aircraft are permitted to operate. Spain claims the airfield is occupied illegally by the UK. The UK claims its sovereignty extends over the isthmus area on which the airfield is built. The UK also claims a three-mile limit in the territorial waters around Gibraltar whereas Spain claims maritime rights to all areas except inside the ports on Gibraltar. UK claims of incursions of Spanish vessels into Gibraltar territorial waters are considered by Spain to reflect routine activity of Spanish ships in their own waters.][
In 2004 a system of trilateral discussion began with Spain, the UK and Gibraltar participating. The discussions ended in 2010 with the UK and Gibraltar asking for their continuance from 2012 to 2014. Spain stating they believed the forum no longer existed and that only ''ad hoc'' discussions on local issues should take place with ]Campo de Gibraltar
Campo de Gibraltar (, "Gibraltar Countryside") is a comarca (county) in the province of Cádiz, Spain, in the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Andalusia, the southernmost part of mainland Europe. It comprises the municipalities o ...
also included.[
In 2015 the UK reaffirmed its claim to sovereignty, that Gibraltar had its right to self-determination set out in the 2006 constitution and that the UK would not enter into any sovereignty discussions unless Gibraltar agreed and further that the UK was committed to safeguarding Gibraltar, its people and its economy. The UK claimed sovereignty over land extended over the sea to a limit of three miles or to the median line under the UN convention on the Law of the Sea. Any discussion must include Gibraltar as their constitution gave them sole powers over many issues.][
Gibraltar claimed it remained the last colony in Europe only because the Government of Spain insisted the inalienable principle of self-determination should not apply to Gibraltarians, with Spain blocking the annual request for Gibraltar to be removed from the UN list of non-self-governing territories.][ The Gibraltarian government asserts that Gibraltar has been effectively ]decolonised
Decolonization or decolonisation is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. Some scholars of decolonization focus especially on separatism, in ...
.
British position
In his evidence to the UK Parliament
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremac ...
Foreign Affairs Committee in 2008, Jim Murphy
James Francis Murphy (born 23 August 1967) is a Scottish former politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party from 2014 to 2015 and Secretary of State for Scotland from 2008 to 2010. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for East Re ...
MP, Minister of State for Europe
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Europe, formerly the Minister of State for Europe is a ministerial position within the Government of the United Kingdom, in charge of affairs with Europe. The Minister can also be responsible for gov ...
stated:
The UK Government will never enter into an agreement on sovereignty without the agreement of the Government of Gibraltar and their people. In fact, we will never even enter into a process without that agreement. The word 'never' sends a substantial and clear commitment and has been used for a purpose. We have delivered that message with confidence to the peoples and the Governments of Gibraltar and Spain. It is a sign of the maturity of our relationship now that that is accepted as the UK's position.
The British Government has ruled out the independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
of Gibraltar because, according to the British view, under the Treaty of Utrecht it would require Spanish consent, and has ruled out Gibraltar's integration into the United Kingdom.
The option of integration was rejected on 26 June 1976, when the British Government issued the Hattersley Memorandum ruling out integration in order to "avoid innovations which might result in prolongation of the frontier restrictions imposed by Spain."
Gibraltarian position
Gibraltar argues that the Spanish claims are baseless, pointing to the right to self-determination
The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a ''jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It stat ...
of all peoples, guaranteed and enshrined by the UN, according to the UN Charter. Its article 1 states that "The Purposes of the United Nations are ... to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples."
To the same section 2 of Resolution 1514 (XV) states: "All peoples have the right to self-determination; by virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development."
Furthermore, resolution 2231 (XXI) itself recalls and demands implementation of Resolution 1514(XV) (guaranteeing Gibraltar's right to self-determination) and therefore it believes that the Spanish claim for its territorial integrity (which would not be affected by Gibraltar's decolonisation) cannot displace or extinguish the rights of the people of Gibraltar under resolution 1514(XV) or under the Charter. From this point of view, any additional right that Spain could claim by virtue of the "reversionary" clause contained in the Treaty of Utrecht is overruled and annulled under article 103 of the UN Charter
The Charter of the United Nations (UN) is the foundational treaty of the UN, an intergovernmental organization. It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the UN system, including its six principal organs: the ...
: " In the event of a conflict between the obligations of the Members of the United Nations under the present Charter and their obligations under any other international agreement, their obligations under the present Charter shall prevail."
Finally, it is argued that there is in fact no principle in International Law or UN doctrine that can displace the inalienable right to self-determination. In this regard, in 2008, the UN 4th Committee rejected the claim that a dispute over sovereignty affected self-determination, affirming it to be a basic human right.
The Gibraltar Government has also argued that Gibraltar is a British territory and therefore by definition not an integral part of any other state, implying that Spain's territorial integrity cannot be affected by anything that occurs in Gibraltar: "Even if integration of a territory was demanded by an interested State it could not be had without ascertaining the freely expressed will of the people, the very sine qua non
''Sine qua non'' (, ) or ''condicio sine qua non'' (plural: ''condiciones sine quibus non'') is an indispensable and essential action, condition, or ingredient. It was originally a Latin legal term for " conditionwithout which it could not be" ...
of all decolonisation."
In a referendum held in Gibraltar in September 2002, Gibraltarian voters rejected even partial Spanish sovereignty.
Speaking to the UK Parliament Foreign Affairs committee in March 2008 Peter Caruana
Sir Peter Richard Caruana, (born 15 October 1956) is a Gibraltarian former politician who served as Chief Minister of Gibraltar from 1996 to 2011 and Leader of the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) from 1991 to 2013.
Caruana is a barrister by pr ...
the Chief Minister of Gibraltar noted:
Spain does not dispute that Gibraltar is properly, in law, British territory. Therefore, this is not disputed land. She has a political claim to the return of Gibraltar sovereignty, but she does not dispute the fact that in proper international law, she ceded sovereignty to Britain in perpetuity and therefore it is undisputed British sovereign territory.
Gibraltarians seem to remain mistrustful of Spain despite improved relations.
Spanish position
The traditional Spanish position is based on territorial integrity
Territorial integrity is the principle under international law that gives the right to sovereign states to defend their borders and all territory in them of another state. It is enshrined in Article 2(4) of the UN Charter and has been recognized ...
, as per UN Resolution 1514 (XV) (1960), which according to Spain, complements and constrains the right to self-determination
The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a ''jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It stat ...
:
"Any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations."
During the 1960s, the UN General Assembly passed five resolutions on the issue (2231 (XXI), "Question of Gibraltar" and 2353 (XXII), "Question of Gibraltar"). The resolutions on the decolonisation of Gibraltar focused on the "interests" and not the "wishes" of the Gibraltarians. The latter resolution states that:
any colonial situation which partially or completely destroys the national unity and territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and especially with paragraph 6 of Resolution 1514 (XV) of the General Assembly ..Invites the Governments of Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to resume without delay the negotiations provided for in General Assembly Resolutions 2070 (XX) and 2231 (XXI), with a view to putting an end to the colonial situation in Gibraltar and to safeguarding the interests of the population.
From such a point of view, Gibraltarians are seen as mere "settlers" from the United Kingdom and other countries and only their interests, not their wishes (as the right to self-determination would involve), need be safeguarded. The point of view that they were settlers is supported by the fact that following the 1704 capture of Gibraltar by Anglo-Dutch troops, only around 70 out of the original 5,000 Spanish inhabitants chose to remain in Gibraltar.[Sayer, Frederick (1865) p. 116] Therefore, Spain has insisted that the Gibraltar dispute is a purely bilateral matter with the United Kingdom and has ignored the role and will of the Gibraltarians.
The first formal proposal on how to achieve the return of Gibraltar to Spain was made on 18 May 1966 by the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fernando Castiella. The proposal comprised three clauses:
# "The cancellation of the Treaty of Utrecht and the subsequent return of Gibraltar to Spain."
# "The stay of the British base in Gibraltar, its use being subject to a specific Anglo-Spanish agreement."
# "A 'Personal Statute' for Gibraltarians, under United Nations guarantee, protecting their cultural, social and economic interest in Gibraltar or anywhere else in Spain, including their British nationality. An 'appropriate ... administrative formula' should be also agreed."
The proposal was rejected by the British Government and by the Gibraltarians, which overwhelmingly voted to remain under British sovereignty in a referendum held in 1967 (12,138 to 44).
As a result, the UN General Assembly, during its twenty-third session, adopted resolution 2429 of 1968 (XXIII), denounced the 1967 referendum and requested the United Kingdom not to delay negotiations.
No further advance for the Spanish claims was achieved for the following forty years. In view of that, the Spanish position seems to have softened, being redirected towards some form of temporary or permanent arrangement to achieve joint sovereignty, which has been proposed by Spain and discussed with the British Government. Such a proposal was tabled by the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Fernando Morán, in 1985. The details of the proposal were not made public, but information released showed an offer on a treaty with the United Kingdom in order to "re-integrate" Gibraltar with Spain, while preserving Gibraltarians' way of life. They would keep their British nationality, as well as their existing political and labour rights, self-government and institutions. Morán proposed that a condominium
A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...
or leaseback arrangement should be agreed, over a 15 or 20-year period. This proposal was not formally rejected by Douglas Hurd
Douglas Richard Hurd, Baron Hurd of Westwell, (born 8 March 1930) is a British Conservative Party politician who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1979 to 1995.
A career diplomat and political secretary to P ...
, the British Foreign Secretary, until 1993.
In 1997 a second proposal was made by the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Abel Matutes
Abel Matutes y Juan (born 31 October 1941) is a Spanish politician who served as Spain's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 6 May 1996 to 2000. Matutes was born in Ibiza on 31 October 1941 and his early political life was in that region. He was ...
, foreseeing a hundred-year period of joint sovereignty before a definite transfer to Spain. A similar scheme was provisionally agreed between the Spanish and British governments in the spring of 2002, but this was eventually abandoned, after sustained opposition by the Gibraltarians that included the Gibraltar sovereignty referendum of 2002.
Spain reported to the UN in 2016 that:
*the UK was refusing to negotiate on sovereignty[
*the land occupied by the UK was greater than that ceded by the Treaty of Utrecht][
*it was the restoration of Spanish territorial integrity that was the key, not self-determination][
*the 2006 constitution had not changed the international status of Gibraltar, with the local authorities having no right to interfere in the negotiations about the (according to Spain) illegal occupation of Spanish territory][
*Spain would not agree to any situation that was detrimental to people in the area or to the finances of Spain or the EU][
*the border checks were EU regulated and designed to stop illegal trafficking of tobacco that was costing the region tax revenue, and that Gibraltar was operating as a tax haven][
*Spain was happy to discuss sovereignty issues with the UK and to have four-way ''ad hoc'' discussion on local issues][
]
Resolution discussions
Spain insisted that the Gibraltar dispute is a bilateral matter purely between the United Kingdom and Spain. This principle appears to have been reflected in the United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
resolutions on the decolonisation
Decolonization or decolonisation is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. Some scholars of decolonization focus especially on independence m ...
of Gibraltar in the 1960s, which focused on the "interests" of the Gibraltarians. Speaking to the UN C24 in 2006, the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, Peter Caruana
Sir Peter Richard Caruana, (born 15 October 1956) is a Gibraltarian former politician who served as Chief Minister of Gibraltar from 1996 to 2011 and Leader of the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) from 1991 to 2013.
Caruana is a barrister by pr ...
, stated that "It is well known and documented and accepted by all that, since 1988, Gibraltar has rejected the bilateral Brussels Process, and will never be content with it."
With the 2004 return of a centre-left government in Spain, a new Spanish position was adopted and, in December 2005, the governments of the UK, Spain and Gibraltar agreed to set up "a new, trilateral process of dialogue outside the Brussels Process" with equal participation by the three parties, any decisions or agreements to be agreed by all three. This was ratified by the 2006 Cordoba Agreement. After meetings in Malaga (Spain), Faro (Portugal), and Mallorca (Spain), the Spanish foreign minister Miguel Ángel Moratinos
Miguel Ángel Moratinos Cuyaubé (born 8 June 1951) is a Spanish diplomat and politician, a member of the Socialist Workers' Party and was a member of Congress from 2004 to 2011, where he represented Córdoba. Since 7 January 2019 he is the UN ...
went to Gibraltar in July 2009 to discuss a range of mutual issues. This was the first official Spanish visit since Gibraltar was ceded. The issue of sovereignty was not discussed.
From 2010 Spain has claimed that the trilateral dialogue is finished and reverted to the original call for a bilateral agreement with the UK with four way ''ad hoc'' meetings which would include Campo de Gibraltar.
Gibraltar political development
The Gibraltarians have sought a more modern status and relationship with the United Kingdom reflecting and expanding the present level of self-government
__NOTOC__
Self-governance, self-government, or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any form of ...
.
A new constitution order was approved in a referendum in 2006, which moved Gibraltar to a more Crown dependency-like relationship with the UK, rather than the previous colonial status. The new constitution came into effect in January 2007. Gibraltar is classified as a British overseas territory
The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remna ...
.
In a letter to the UN the British representative, Emyr Jones Parry
Sir Emyr Jones Parry (born 21 September 1947) is a British retired diplomat. He is a former Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations and former UK Permanent Representative on the North Atlantic Council.
Education ...
, writes: "The new constitution provides for a modern relationship between Gibraltar and the United Kingdom. I do not think that this description would apply to any relationship based on colonialism."
Chief Minister Peter Caruana
Sir Peter Richard Caruana, (born 15 October 1956) is a Gibraltarian former politician who served as Chief Minister of Gibraltar from 1996 to 2011 and Leader of the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) from 1991 to 2013.
Caruana is a barrister by pr ...
addressed the UN Special Committee on Decolonization regarding the new constitution in 2008. He put forth Gibraltar Government's view that "As far as we are concerned, the decolonisation of Gibraltar is no longer a pending issue."
Parallel with this, the Government of Gibraltar has engaged in talks with Spain to resolve other disputes, setting aside the issue of sovereignty.
Areas of contention
Isthmus
The territory of Gibraltar contains an section of the isthmus
An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea counterpart of an isthmu ...
that links the Rock with Spain. It is argued by Spain that this section of the isthmus was never ceded by Spain; rather, it was gradually occupied de facto by the British.
The growth of Gibraltar onto the southern half of the isthmus began with the construction of two forts in the northernmost part of the ceded territory. In 1815, Gibraltar suffered a yellow fever
Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...
epidemic. This led to a Spanish concession so a temporary quarantine health camp could be built on the isthmus. After the plague was over, the British did not remove the camp. In 1854, a new epidemic prompted more health camps, which eventually gained Gibraltar these extra 800 metres of land. The occupation of the isthmus culminated in 1938-1939 with the construction of the aerodrome
An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...
during the Spanish civil war
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
.
The Treaty of Utrecht did not mention British sovereignty over Gibraltar beyond the fortified perimeter of the town as it was in 1713. However the Treaty ceded the town "together with the port, fortifications, and forts thereunto belonging", which included several forts along the line of the current frontier. The United Kingdom further claims title to the southern half of the isthmus based on continuous possession over a long period.
The territory north of the current border had been occupied by Spain in the 1730s, during the construction of the so-called Spanish Lines or more properly Lines of Contravallation of Gibraltar
The Lines of Contravallation of Gibraltar (Spanish: ''Línea de Contravalación de Gibraltar'' or ''Línea de Gibraltar''), known in English as the "Spanish Lines", were a set of fortifications built by the Spanish across the northern part of the ...
.
Territorial waters
Both the United Kingdom and Spain have ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty, is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. , 167 c ...
of 1982, which governs countries' oceanic territorial claims. Both countries made statements regarding Gibraltar in their declarations upon ratification of the Convention. The Spanish statement was:
2. In ratifying the Convention, Spain wishes to make it known that this act cannot be construed as recognition of any rights or status regarding the maritime space of Gibraltar that are not included in article 10 of the Treaty of Utrecht of 13 July 1713 concluded between the Crowns of Spain and Great Britain. Furthermore, Spain does not consider that Resolution III of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea is applicable to the colony of Gibraltar, which is subject to a process of decolonization in which only relevant resolutions adopted by the United Nations General Assembly are applicable.
The British government responded to the Spanish statement in their own statement:
With regard to point 2 of the declaration made upon ratification of the Convention by the Government of Spain, the Government of the United Kingdom has no doubt about the sovereignty of the United Kingdom over Gibraltar, including its territorial waters. The Government of the United Kingdom, as the administering authority of Gibraltar, has extended the United Kingdom's accession to the Convention and ratification of the Agreement to Gibraltar. The Government of the United Kingdom, therefore, rejects as unfounded point 2 of the Spanish declaration.
However, Articles 309 and 310 of the Convention state that "No reservations or exceptions may be made to this Convention unless expressly permitted by other articles of this Convention", and that if a signatory state makes a declaration upon ratification, that declaration must "not purport to exclude or to modify the legal effect of the provisions of this Convention in their application" to that state.
The dispute over territorial waters, which was rekindled in 2013 following a fishing dispute seems likely to become more important with the discovery of a British treasure ship, HMS ''Sussex'', and the Black Swan Project The Black Swan Project is the project name given by Odyssey Marine Exploration for its discovery and recovery of an estimated US$500 million ( £314 million) worth of silver and gold coins from the ocean floor. Initially Odyssey kept the origin of ...
controversy.
Questions about the waters have previously been asked in the House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
, and answered as follows:
Under international law, States are entitled, but not required, to extend their territorial sea up to a maximum breadth of 12 nautical miles. Where the coasts of two States are opposite or adjacent, the general rule is that neither is entitled, unless they agree otherwise, to extend its territorial sea beyond the median line. The UK Government considers that a limit of three nautical miles is sufficient in the case of Gibraltar.
The Government of Gibraltar for its part holds that there is no economic or social need for more than three nautical miles of territorial water, limited to two nautical miles to the west in the Bay of Gibraltar
The Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeciras), is a bay at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula. It is around long by wide, covering an area of some , with a depth of up to in the centre of the bay. It opens to the south into the Strait ...
due to the median line between British and Spanish land.[
At the end of 2008, the European Commission included most of the territorial waters that surround Gibraltar under a marine conservation area known as the "Estrecho Oriental" that will be maintained by Spain. The UK initiated legal proceedings with the support of Gibraltar, which were initially rejected by the General Court on procedural grounds. A 2011 appeal was dismissed, again on procedural grounds. The European Court of Justice had again ruled against that appeal in 2012.
There have been disputes concerning Spanish patrol boats inside these claimed territorial waters. In May 2009 there was a number of Spanish incursions into British-claimed waters around Gibraltar, including by a Spanish Navy fisheries protection vessel, leading to intervention by police and a diplomatic protest by the UK.
Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, vessels passing through the Strait of Gibraltar do so under the regime of ]transit passage
Transit passage is a concept of the law of the sea, which allows a vessel or aircraft the freedom of navigation or overflight solely for the purpose of continuous and expeditious transit of a strait between one part of the high seas or exclusive ...
, rather than the more limited innocent passage
Innocent passage is a concept in the law of the sea that allows for a vessel to pass through the archipelagic and territorial waters of another state, subject to certain restrictions. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea Article 19 ...
allowed in most territorial waters.
Economy
The Spanish government argues that Gibraltar's tax schemes harm the Spanish economy. In January 2005, the European Commissioner for Competition
The Commissioner for Competition is the member of the European Commission responsible for competition. The current commissioner is Margrethe Vestager ( ALDE).
Responsibilities
The portfolio has responsibility for such matters as commercial co ...
requested the UK (responsible for Gibraltar's external relations) to abolish Gibraltar's tax-exempt company regime by the end of 2010 (at the latest) on the basis that it constitutes illegal state aid that could distort competition. Unlike other tax havens
A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or ...
like Andorra
, image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg
, symbol_type = Coat of arms
, national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...
, Gibraltar has not signed a mutual agreement with Spain to exchange fiscal information, although such an agreement has been offered by the Gibraltar Government, but Spain has declined to accept it because it does not consider Gibraltar as its diplomatic counterpart. Another concern that has been raised is that each day thousands of Spaniards buy goods at cheaper prices in Gibraltar due to exchange rates and lack of VAT
A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the en ...
, contributing to the Gibraltar economy instead of that of Spain.
The Spanish government wants to increase the exchange of fiscal information in order to prevent Gibraltar banks being used for tax evasion
Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the taxp ...
and money laundering
Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...
. The United Kingdom House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
Foreign Affairs Select Committee
The Foreign Affairs Select Committee is one of many Parliamentary select committees of the United Kingdom, select committees of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, British House of Commons, which scrutinises the expenditure, administration ...
has directed an inquiry that determined that Gibraltar has always complied with all international and EU requirements to prevent such activity.
We conclude that the series of allegations which Spain makes against Gibraltar appear almost wholly to be without substance. In many cases, it is not just the Government of Gibraltar but the British Government as well which is traduced. It is deeply regrettable that allegations are made that cannot be sustained by a basis in fact. If concrete evidence of wrong-doing were produced, the British Government should act promptly to deal with the problem. But so long as allegations are unsubstantiated, the British Government should continue to rebut them promptly and decisively.
Referred to as an "international financial centre", Gibraltar was among 35 jurisdictions identified by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries ...
(OECD) as a tax haven
A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...
in June 2000. As a result of having made a commitment in accordance with the OECD's 2001 Progress Report on the OECD's Project on Harmful Tax Practices, Gibraltar was not included in the OECD's list of uncooperative tax havens.[ However, in its April 2009 progress report, the OECD listed Gibraltar in the list of jurisdictions that, although committed, had not "substantially implemented" yet the internationally agreed tax standard. Following Gibraltar's signing of 12 additional ]Tax Information Exchange Agreements Tax information exchange agreements (TIEA) provide for the exchange of information on request relating to a specific criminal or civil tax investigation or civil tax matters under investigation.
A model TIEA was developed by the OECD Global Forum W ...
(TIEAs), as of October 2009, with jurisdictions including the UK, USA and Germany, Gibraltar was listed in the OECD "white list". It is currently listed as "largely compliant" by the OECD's .
Along with the Isle of Man
)
, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
and Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
, Gibraltar has been used as an international finance centre by the Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
n conglomerate Yukos
OJSC "Yukos Oil Company" (russian: ОАО Нефтяна́я Компа́ния Ю́КОС, links=no, ) was an oil and gas company based in Moscow, Russia. Yukos was acquired from the Russian government by Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovs ...
/ Menatep.
There have been claims that some Gibraltarian motorboat
A motorboat, speedboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine.
Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the internal combustion engine, the gea ...
s are engaging in drugs and tobacco smuggling. However, since 1996 there has been a law in Gibraltar controlling fast launches licensing their ownership and importation and prohibiting the entry of unlicensed craft into Gibraltar waters. In 2014, inspectors from the EU's fraud office OLAF wrote to the Spanish governments urging an investigation of tobacco smuggling, amid revelations that Gibraltar, with a population of less than 30,000, imported 117 million packets of cigarettes in 2013. In 2015, Spanish authorities broke up a major tobacco smuggling operation, seizing 65,000 packs of cigarettes, five boats, two firearms, communications equipment and €100,000 cash. Authorities estimated the group was smuggling 150,000 packs of contraband tobacco into Spain every week.
Military importance
Military control of the Strait of Gibraltar
The Strait of Gibraltar ( ar, مضيق جبل طارق, Maḍīq Jabal Ṭāriq; es, Estrecho de Gibraltar, Archaic: Pillars of Hercules), also known as the Straits of Gibraltar, is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Medi ...
has historically been the most important use of Gibraltar, allowing Britain to defend its trade lanes to the East. The British admiral Lord Fisher
John Arbuthnot Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher, (25 January 1841 – 10 July 1920), commonly known as Jacky or Jackie Fisher, was a British Admiral of the Fleet. With more than sixty years in the Royal Navy, his efforts to reform the service helped ...
stated that Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
, mapsize =
, image_map2 = Gib ...
was one of the five keys that locked the world, together with Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
, Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
, Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa.
A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is t ...
and Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
, all of which have been controlled by Britain at one point.
Its military relevance has reduced with the construction in 1953 of the US Naval Station Rota
Naval Station Rota, also known as NAVSTA Rota ( es, Base Naval de Rota, links=no), is a Spanish-American naval base commanded by a Spanish Rear Admiral. Located in Rota in the Province of Cádiz, NAVSTA Rota is the largest American military c ...
(the biggest Allied base in the area) and with the end of the Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, but it is still an important position as more than one quarter of the global maritime traffic transits through the strait every year. Controlling the strait is of vital importance to NATO. The task of controlling the strait has been traditionally assigned by NATO to the UK, but the recent advances that Spain has made in its armed forces and the bases Spain has in the zone have made NATO reconsider this. However, the tense relations that Spain had with the American administration under George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
and the special friendship of the US with the UK have caused NATO to take a more favourable position towards the UK and Morocco for control of the strait.
Re-emergence of dispute
1953: Rekindling the dispute
In May 1954, despite objections by Spain, Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...
visited Gibraltar. Spanish dictator Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...
had renewed claims to The Rock. British National Archives
The National Archives (TNA, cy, Yr Archifau Cenedlaethol) is a non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Its parent department is the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sp ...
files from 1953 show that Franco claimed that Spain had been promised The Rock in return for not attacking the territory during the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...
conducted a full review of their files to see whether Franco's claim had any foundation. A confidential memo called the Spanish communiqué "a flimsy and unconvincing document", and the Government put an end to the dispute by refusing to comment on the claims.
1967 and 2002 referendums
In a 1967 referendum on sovereignty organised by the British Government, 99.6% of voters voted to remain under British sovereignty.
In a second referendum on sovereignty held in November 2002 by the Government of Gibraltar, 187 voted yes (1%) and 17,900 voted no (99%) on the proposal of sharing sovereignty with Spain. The question put was:
On the 12 July 2002 the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, in a formal statement in the House of Commons, said that after twelve months of negotiation the British Government and Spain are in broad agreement on many of the principles that should underpin a lasting settlement of Spain's sovereignty claim, which included the principle that Britain and Spain should share sovereignty over Gibraltar.
Do you approve of the principle that Britain and Spain should share sovereignty over Gibraltar?
Spanish reaction varied from questioning the validity of the process, to observing that no Spanish government has done enough to make joint sovereignty or integration with Spain an attractive prospect.
It is reported that Spanish "secret funds" were used to create a favourable opinion in Gibraltar to the Spanish sovereignty claim. How the money was spent remains uncertain.
Spanish restrictions
After the Spanish constitution
The Spanish Constitution (Spanish, Asturleonese, and gl, Constitución Española; eu, Espainiako Konstituzioa; ca, Constitució Espanyola; oc, Constitucion espanhòla) is the democratic law that is supreme in the Kingdom of Spain. It was e ...
, Spain was still reluctant to re-open the border because of the consequences it might have. However the border was re-opened in 1984, allowing free access between both sides, although Spain did not open ferry services until later. Further problems have been encountered regarding the airport, as it is placed on disputed neutral land. Under the Lisbon Agreement of 1980:
Both Governments have reached agreement on the re-establishment of direct communications in the region. The Spanish Government has decided to suspend the application of the measures at present in force.
This was to include reinstatement of a ferry service between Gibraltar and Algeciras
Algeciras ( , ) is a municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Cádiz, Andalusia. Located in the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, near the Strait of Gibraltar, it is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeci ...
. This was finally reinstated after 40 years, on 16 December 2009, operated by the Spanish company Transcoma.
At the end of 2006, the restrictions on the airport were removed as a result of the Córdoba Agreement (2006) and direct flights from Madrid by Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
started operation.
On 22 September 2008, however, Iberia announced that it would cease its flights to Madrid by 28 September due to "economic reasons", namely, lack of demand. This left Gibraltar without any air links with Spain, until May 2009 when Air Andalus opened a service. Air communications with Spain ceased again in August 2010, when Air Andalus lost its licence.
Spain demonstrated opposition to Gibraltar's membership of UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
.
Disputes prior to Brexit
2000 – An issue of contention was the repair of the nuclear powered submarine
A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over "conventional" (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion, ...
, . The Government of Spain expressed its concern about the effective safety for the inhabitants of Gibraltar and the some 250,000 people living in the ''Campo de Gibraltar
Campo de Gibraltar (, "Gibraltar Countryside") is a comarca (county) in the province of Cádiz, Spain, in the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Andalusia, the southernmost part of mainland Europe. It comprises the municipalities o ...
'', the adjacent area in Spain.
The inhabitants of the area saw this repair as a precedent of future repair operations in Gibraltar rather than the one-off emergency the British Government has claimed (no other nuclear submarine has been repaired in Gibraltar since). On the other hand, the Government of Gibraltar accused Spain of using this incident as an excuse to justify its 300-year-old sovereignty claim to Gibraltar. Despite many protests, the Government of Gibraltar allowed the work to be done after employing its own experts to confirm it could be undertaken safely. The submarine was in Gibraltar for a year before leaving, during which the repair was completed without incident.
Subsequently, Spanish politicians have complained about every nuclear submarine visit to Gibraltar, and have tried unsuccessfully to get a reassurance that this would totally stop. There have been no further protests against nuclear submarines in Gibraltar. Commenting, the Government of Gibraltar said: "Nuclear submarine visits to Gibraltar are a matter for the UK and Gibraltar. Visits for operational or recreational purposes are welcomed by the Gibraltar Government ... To our knowledge, it is not the position of the present Spanish Government or any previous Spanish Government, that it is opposed to visits by nuclear submarines."
2002 – In the months that predated the referendum called by the Gibraltar government on the joint sovereignty agreement disagreements could be categorised as:
* Control of the military installations. Spain wished to control the military installations of the territory, even in the event of joint sovereignty. This pretension was considered unacceptable by the British Ministry of Defence
The Ministry of Defence (MOD or MoD) is the department responsible for implementing the defence policy set by His Majesty's Government, and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces.
The MOD states that its principal objectives are to ...
.
* The referendum itself. Both the Spanish and British governments stated that the referendum had no legal effect, but it clearly indicated the democratically expressed will of the people of Gibraltar to "not be Spanish". As the British Government is committed to respect those wishes, the idea of a joint sovereignty deal has been abandoned.
2004 – A visit by The Princess Royal
Princess Royal is a style customarily (but not automatically) awarded by a British monarch to their eldest daughter. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been sev ...
in June 2004, the brief return of HMS ''Tireless'' in July 2004, together with the Gibraltar Tercentenary Celebrations, Tercentenary Celebrations of the capture of The Rock were subjects of complaint by the Spanish Government.
A new round of talks on a tri-lateral basis were proposed in October 2004 to discuss regional co-operation. In February 2005 the first talks took place at a meeting held in Málaga and subsequently in Portugal and London.
This is the first sign of formal recognition of the Government of Gibraltar, and has been generally welcomed. The main issues of the talks have been a new agreement on the Gibraltar Airport, airport, the pensions of the Spanish workers that worked in Gibraltar during the 1960s, and the removal of Telephone numbers in Gibraltar, Spanish restrictions on telecommunications.
2006 – Those issues were successfully resolved in September 2006 in the Córdoba Agreement. The process continues.
2007 – A bulk carrier, the , ran aground south of Europa Point in Gibraltar and broke up on the reef in August 2007, generating accusations of pollution in Spain and claims not only against the Government of Gibraltar but also against that of Spain. Its cargo was scrap metal and the vessel's fuel was promptly drained. The Government of Gibraltar claimed in December 2007 that the operation did not represent a material risk to the environment since the vessel had been defuelled and only small, remnant amounts of fuel remained in the engines themselves. The Spanish branch of Greenpeace claimed that, as late as February 2008, fuel spills from the New Flame had polluted Spanish beaches around the Bay of Gibraltar
The Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeciras), is a bay at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula. It is around long by wide, covering an area of some , with a depth of up to in the centre of the bay. It opens to the south into the Strait ...
. Official Spanish sources played this down stating that the fuel reaching the beaches of Algeciras was in "insignificant amounts".
2009 – The dispute over British-claimed territorial waters gained prominence with deliberate incursions by Spain, triggering angry headlines in the UK tabloid press. In December 2009, four armed Civil Guard (Spain), Civil Guard officers were detained after three landed in Gibraltar in pursuit of two suspected smugglers, who were themselves arrested. The Spanish Interior Minister Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba personally telephoned Chief Minister Peter Caruana
Sir Peter Richard Caruana, (born 15 October 1956) is a Gibraltarian former politician who served as Chief Minister of Gibraltar from 1996 to 2011 and Leader of the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) from 1991 to 2013.
Caruana is a barrister by pr ...
to apologise, stating that there were "no political intentions" behind the incident. The Chief Minister was prepared to accept it had not been a political act. The Spanish officers were released by the police the following day, who said that "Enquiries established that the Guardia Civil mistakenly entered Gibraltar Territorial Waters in hot pursuit and have since apologised for their actions."
2012 – Queen Sofía of Spain cancelled plans to travel to the United Kingdom to participate in the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II. The cancellation was a protest in response to a planned visit to Gibraltar by Prince Edward. The Spanish government also lodged a protest to the planned visit by Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex. Relations between Britain and Spain reportedly "returned to a state of growing confrontation" following the election of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy of the People's Party (Spain), People's Party in December 2011. Additional protests followed in August 2012 after Gibraltar abrogated an accord that allowed Spanish fishing boats to operate in its waters.
2013 – Disagreements between Spain and the United Kingdom Government re-surfaced in July 2013, initially after the Government of Gibraltar, Gibraltar Government placed a number of concrete blocks in the sea off the coast of Gibraltar, intending to form an artificial reef. The Spanish Government protested however stating that it had a negative impact on fishing in the area, restricting access for Spanish fishing vessels. At the end of July the Spanish Government introduced extra border checks for people going in and out of the territory into Spain. The British Government protested as the checks were causing major delays of up to seven hours while people waited to cross the border, and on 2 August the Spanish Ambassador was summoned to the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London to discuss these developments.
On 2 August 2013, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Garcia-Margallo gave an interview to Spain's ''ABC'' newspaper. He announced possible plans to introduce a 50 euro border crossing fee for people going to and from Gibraltar, in response to the creation of the artificial reef. Plans to close Spanish airspace to Gibraltar bound flights were also reported, as were plans for an investigation by Spanish tax authorities into property owned by around 6,000 Gibraltarians in neighbouring parts of Spain. The Spanish Foreign Minister also mooted plans to changes in the law meaning British online gaming companies based in Gibraltar would have to base servers in Spain, meaning that they would come under Madrid's tax regime.
The British Foreign office responded to these comments: "The prime minister has made clear that the UK government will meet its constitutional commitments to the people of Gibraltar and will not compromise on sovereignty."
Effect of Brexit
After the United Kingdom Brexit, voted to leave the European Union, despite a strong vote to remain in Gibraltar, on 23 June 2016, Spain reiterated its position that it wanted to jointly govern Gibraltar with the United Kingdom and said it would seek to block Gibraltar from participating in talks over future deals between the UK and EU. The European council released a series of guidelines on negotiations for withdrawal, with core principal number 22 stating that any agreement affecting Gibraltar needed the agreement of Spain suggesting that Spain had been given a veto while the United Kingdom re-iterated its commitment to Gibraltar.
EU Withdrawal Agreement
On 18 October 2018, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (politician), Pedro Sánchez announced that he had reached an agreement with Britain, declaring that a special protocol about Gibraltar was being prepared along with the UK Government and was hopeful to reach a good agreement for both parties. However, on 19 November 2018, the Spanish government, Spanish Government threatened not to support the Brexit Agreement Draft because they say that an article was added without their consent that could be misunderstood and leave Spain without a say over Gibraltar. On 22 November 2018, PM Sánchez and PM May discussed the problem but the Spanish PM declared that "our positions remain far away. My Government will always defend the interests of Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
. If there are no changes, we will veto Brexit." On 24 November 2018, Spain agreed not to veto the Brexit deal in exchange for a tripartite statement of the President of the European Commission, European Commission President and the President of the European Council, European Council President, the UK Government and the EU Member states, EU Member States saying that no deal would be reached about Gibraltar without Spain's consent. The European statement also declared that the EU does not consider Gibraltar to be part of the United Kingdom.
See also
* Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute between the United Kingdom and Argentina
* Akrotiri and Dhekelia claimed by Cyprus
* Chagos Archipelago sovereignty dispute
* The Spanish enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, Islas Chafarinas, Peñón de Alhucemas and Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera disputed by Morocco.
* Disputed status of Olivença between Portugal and Spain.
* Spanish exclave of Llívia in France.
* History of Gibraltar
* ''Mottos of Francoist Spain#Gibraltar es español (Gibraltar is Spanish), Gibraltar es español''
References
Notes
Sources
British sources
George Hills
was a BBC World Service broadcaster, Spanish Historian and Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Although listed as a 'British' source, Hills supports the Spanish view of Gibraltar. He died in 2002. His research documents are now available at King's College, UCL as a separate collection.
* General Sir William Jackson (British Army officer), William Jackson was Governor of Gibraltar between 1978 and 1982, a military Historian and former Chairman of the Friends of Gibraltar Heritage.
Spanish sources
* Chapter 2, "La lucha por Gibraltar" (The Struggle for Gibraltar) is availabl
online
(PDF). Isidro Sepúlveda Muñoz is a Contemporary History Professor in the UNED ("Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia").
* Máximo Cajal is a Spanish diplomatist, ambassador in different countries and special representative of the former Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, in the Alliance of Civilizations. He was the only survivor of the assault of the Embassy of Spain in Guatemala by the forces of the Guatemalan dictatorship in 1980.
Further reading
*Fawcett, J. E. S. Gibraltar: The Legal Issues in ''International Affairs (journal), International Affairs'' (Royal Institute of International Affairs), Vol. 43, No. 2 (Apr., 1967)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Disputed Status Of Gibraltar
History of Gibraltar
Politics of Gibraltar
Spain–United Kingdom relations
Territorial disputes of Spain
Territorial disputes of the United Kingdom
International disputes
Spanish irredentism