New Delhi: Spain’s economy minister Luis de Guindos said on Tuesday that Madrid has full backing from the European Union in the ongoing independence crisis in Catalonia.
He rejected the call for independence and termed this move as a “rebellion against the rule of law.”
“What I can say is that everyone has supported the position of the Spanish government,” said De Guindos, as he arrived at a meeting with his EU counterparts after breakfast talks with ministers from the European People’s Party, the bloc’s right-of-centre political grouping.
His comments come hours before an expected speech by Puigdemont, the first since Catalonia held a referendum. It is still not known whether the Catalan president will actually go ahead with a declaration of independence or back down.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French leader Emmanuel Macron backed Spanish unity in recent telephone calls with Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.
Ministers from Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland and Hungary, as well as European Commission Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis took part in the breakfast meeting, according to Spanish government sources.
“This is not an issue of independence… This regards a rebellion against the rule of law and the rule of law is the basis not only for coexistence in Spain but also for coexistence in Europe,” said De Guindos.
EU member states and institutions are backing Spain but they consider the Catalan crisis to be an internal Spanish matter.
“It’s all up to Mr Puigdemont right now,” said De Guindos, who wanted the return of “common sense, not only for Catalonia as a whole, but also for the whole of Spain and Europe.”
Catalonia, a wealthy region of 7.5 million people in north-eastern Spain, has its own language and culture. It also has a high degree of autonomy, but is not recognized as a separate nation under the Spanish constitution.