MADRID (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2018) The European Union fully supports Madrid in its negotiations with London on Gibraltar, contested by two sides for over 300 years, held in the light of the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union, EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said on Monday.
Earlier in the day, Barnier meet with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Madrid. The visit comes in the run-up to the two-day EU informal summit in Salzburg, which will kick off on Wednesday. Brexit will be high on the meeting's agenda.
"A deal with #UK is possible if integrity of Single Market is preserved. Full support for Spain in its negotiations w/ UK on #Gibraltar, which need to conclude asap," Barnier wrote on Twitter.
Gibraltar is the United Kingdom's overseas territory, located at the tip of the Iberian peninsula, that has a land border with Spain. In 1967 and 2002, local residents rejected the idea of joining Spain in referendums.
According to the Brexit guidelines, once the United Kingdom leaves the union, no EU-UK agreement "may apply to the territory of Gibraltar without agreement between the Kingdom of Spain and the United Kingdom." Bilateral talks between London and Madrid regarding Gibraltar have been underway since the beginning of the year.
Spain has repeatedly expressed its determination to use talks with London to the benefit of its nationals living on the border with Gibraltar or working there. The border issue and format of economic ties with the territory have special prevalence due to high unemployment in Spain's adjacent areas, which makes workplaces in Gibraltar and economic ties with the strip of land almost only way for local residents to earn money.
