"Historic agreement" on Gibraltar

Brussels / LondonAgreement between Spain and the United Kingdom on Gibraltar in Brussels. The parties announced in a joint statement this Wednesday that more than five years after Brexit, they have reached an agreement regulating the Gibraltar agreement. border controls between the State and the Rock, the point that had so far blocked understanding even though It's been more than five years since the divorce. Thus, the withdrawal of land controls is confirmed, and the famous fence that separated the Rock from the State will remain open. Spanish and Gibraltarian police will carry out controls at the port and airport. "We have reached a historic and definitive agreement. It marks a turning point for stability and cooperation between Gibraltar and Campo de Gibraltar," Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares expressed his congratulations at a joint press conference—but separate from the British authorities—with European Commissioner for Foreign Affairs Mar Šefčovič.

The thorniest issue in the agreement was who would control the borders, and it was finally established that at the port and airport—in practice, the external border of the Union—the Spanish police will carry out one control—like the force in charge of monitoring entry into the Schengen area—and the British police will carry out another. People wishing to enter the Rock will therefore have to pass through two. However, as authorities on all sides have insisted, the fence between Gibraltar and the Spanish state will remain open, as it has been until now, and will continue to facilitate the movement of the 15,000 workers who enter the Rock daily. Goods circulating between Spain and Gibraltar will also not have to undergo any inspection.

Madrid has preferred this option, which enables an "open Gibraltar in Spain," according to diplomatic sources familiar with the negotiations, rather than entrenching itself on issues such as the claim to sovereignty, which was a non-negotiable point for London: the issue of sovereignty is especially relevant. And while it may raise accusations of surrender within the most extreme opposition in Spain—and also in the United Kingdom, for opposing reasons—the truth is that the wording of the political pact—which must now take legal form—is structured so that Morocco cannot invoke it under any circumstances to raise its traditional demands. Both parties maintain their sovereignty claims and assert that the pact changes nothing in this regard. In other words, Spain claims sovereignty over Gibraltar, but the United Kingdom will not cede it unless the local population wants it to. Therefore, Madrid is taking a pragmatic approach. The economic benefit to the entire Campo de Gibraltar area is worth it, according to Pedro Sánchez's government.

The agreement was announced after the fourth meeting in a year and a half in the Belgian capital between Albares, the European Commissioner in charge of Brussels-London relations, and his British counterpart, David Lammy, and the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, Fabian Picardo. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, also welcomed the news: "I welcome the conclusion of negotiations on the future agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom on Gibraltar. This agreement safeguards the integrity of the Schengen area and the single market, while ensuring stability, legal certainty, and prosperity for the network.

The new context that the agreement has allowed

The agreement between Spain, the United Kingdom, and the EU on Gibraltar was the last remaining Brexit detail and had been completely stalled for years. However, the return of a Labour government to the United Kingdom and the improved relations between London and Brussels in recent months have helped seal the deal. In fact, the EU and the British government signed an understanding for a new post-Brexit approach On May 19th, Brussels took a key step this Tuesday to pave the way by removing Gibraltar from the list of tax havens. Being included in this group of EU third countries, although it does not entail sanctions, requires European financial institutions to apply more controls to operations and transfers carried out by entities established on the Rock.

Spanish diplomatic sources consider the pact the culmination of a process of various agreements in all fields. One of the most notable is the financial protocol, already ratified, which obliges Gibraltar to provide Spain with all tax information on its activity in the region. It also requires all companies based on the Rock, but with a majority of Spanish capital or shareholders, to pay taxes in Madrid. "Gibraltar no longer poses any tax risk for Spain," these same sources assure.

The closing of the agreement confirms the positive momentum in relations between Madrid and London. The United Kingdom, in fact, was the main investor in the state last year (€12 billion), a business volume that has a Spanish counterpart on the islands due to the numerous companies involved in the British productive fabric, such as Indra, Acciona, Navantia, and Dragados, among others. Spain also welcomes greater involvement in the United Kingdom's defense industry at a time when rearmament on the continent is a priority.