Spanish Domestic Situation Seen Behind Recent Gibraltar Provocations

Spanish Domestic Situation Seen Behind Recent Gibraltar Provocations

British Prime Minister David Cameron has asked European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso to gather evidence on whether the additional checks Spain has imposed on its border with Gibraltar are politically motivated. Cameron’s request is part of an escalating dispute between the United Kingdom and Spain over Gibraltar, a British Overseas Territory surrounded by Spanish territory.

Spain, which claims sovereignty over Gibraltar, a small peninsula off Spain’s southern coast, cited concerns over smuggling as the reason it was imposing additional checks at the border.

In separate email interviews, Pawel Swidlicki, research analyst at Open Europe, and Alejandro Baron, a researcher at FRIDE, both told Trend Lines the domestic challenges Spain is facing are causing Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to press the issue of defending Spanish interests in Gibraltar.

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