The Córdoba Agreement was an agreement between the governments of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, 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 Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

to establish a tripartite forum for co-operation on

. It was signed by 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. From 2004 to 2010, he served as t ...

, UK Minister for Europe

Geoff Hoon Geoffrey William Hoon (born 6 December 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashfield in Nottinghamshire from 1992 to 2010. He is a former Defence Secretary, Transport Secretary, Leader ...

and Gibraltar's Chief Minister Peter Caruana in

Córdoba, Spain Córdoba ( ; ), or sometimes Cordova ( ), is a city in Andalusia, Spain, and the capital of the Province of Córdoba (Spain), province of Córdoba. It is the third most populated Municipalities in Spain, municipality in Andalusia. The city prim ...

Background

The agreement, signed in 2006, was the result of nearly two years of talks between the three governments, giving a voice to Gibraltar in talks between Britain and Spain for the first time. The agreement stemmed from an initiative by the incoming

Spanish Socialist Workers' Party The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources: * * * * List of political parties in Spain, political party ...

government in 2004, which proposed a Forum of Dialogue, in which for the first time Gibraltar would take part as an independent third party.

Key agreements

The key agreements were: * Aviation: Flights between Spain and Gibraltar * Telecommunications: Spanish recognition of Gibraltar's +350

international dialling code Telephone country codes are telephone number prefixes for reaching subscribers in foreign countries or areas by international direct dialing (IDD). Country codes are defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in ITU-T standard ...

, lifting of restrictions on the number of telephone numbers in Gibraltar that could be called from Spain and mobile roaming in Spain for Gibraltar mobile phones * Dispute over pension payments to Spaniards who once worked in Gibraltar resolved * Spain promised to reduce its border controls and ease movement across the frontier. The agreement established the Tripartite Forum, providing for regular dialogue between the three parties. In July 2009, the Spanish foreign minister Miguel Ángel Moratinos attended talks in Gibraltar, the first Spanish minister to ever make an official visit to the British Overseas Territory. The agreement has not been without criticism. In Spain it has been reported as "a shameful moment in Spain's history" and in Gibraltar talks were criticised due to Moratinos' role in the controversy of

British Gibraltar Territorial Waters The Gibraltar Port Authority develops and manages the Port of Gibraltar. History On 19 February 1706, Anne, Queen of Great Britain, granted free-port status to Gibraltar. In the early 18th century, Gibraltar was principally a garrison where ...

. The forum was designed to facilitate dialogue on a number of issues, putting the sovereignty issue to one side. An independent appraisal by Peter Gold concluded that "given the fundamental differences in the ultimate objectives of the Forum participants and in particular Spain's sensitivity to Gibraltar's status, the agreements may only prove to be a means of managing the Gibraltar 'problem' rather than resolving it." Spain has continued to insist it will only discuss sovereignty with the United Kingdom and not as part of the Tripartite Forum.

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