Alerta diplomática por las concesiones del Gobierno en Gibraltar larazon.es - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from larazon.es Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Gibraltar has avoided the damaging prospect of a hard border with the EU after the UK and Spain struck a preliminary deal over the status of the tiny British territory, hours before the end of the Brexit transition period.
It means Gibraltar, off Spain’s southern tip, will now join Europe’s Schengen zone, allowing travel checks to be waived.
“We can look forward with expectation and hope, said Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo. We believe we may now be able to reset our relationship with Spain and cast it in a more positive light going forward.
Spain’s Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya said it meant that residents of Gibraltar could “breathe a sigh of relief”.
Gibraltar avoid hard EU border after last-gasp UK-Spain deal thenationalnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thenationalnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab’s statement:
Today, working side by side with the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, and following intensive discussions with the Spanish government, we reached agreement on a political framework to form the basis of a separate treaty between the UK and the EU regarding Gibraltar.
We will now send this to the European Commission, in order to initiate negotiations on the formal treaty. In the meantime, all sides are committed to mitigating the effects of the end of the Transition Period on Gibraltar, and in particular ensure border fluidity, which is clearly in the best interests of the people living on both sides.
Gibraltar s border with Spain had been in doubt. Credit: PA
Gibraltar s border with Spain will remain open following the end of the Brexit transition period after the UK and European Union agreed a draft deal.
Gibraltar, whose sovereignty is disputed by Spain and Britain, will remain subject to the rule of the free-travel Schengen area, Spain’s foreign minister said.
Arancha Gonzalez Laya announced that the “agreement in principle” means people in Gibraltar “can breathe a sigh of relief”.
She said that further details on the agreement would be published in the New Year.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said: “Today, working side by side with the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, and following intensive discussions with the Spanish government, we reached agreement on a political framework to form the basis of a separate treaty between the UK and the EU regarding Gibraltar.