Gibraltar agreement between Spain and UK opens up new prospects for the Falklands cause – Telam

The principle of the agreement on Gibraltar recently concluded by Spain and the United Kingdom is closely observed by the Argentine government, because of the implications it may have on the re-establishment of bilateral dialogue with Great Britain for sovereignty of the Falkland Islands.

This understanding, comes in addition to the exclusion of the Malvinas from the post-Brexit trade deal between the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom and the increasingly obvious withdrawal of European support for British colonial policy they configure a potentially favorable scenario for Argentina’s claim to the archipelago.

Although the prior agreement which will insert Gibraltar into the Schengen zone, on the free movement of persons, concluded a few hours before the entry into force of Brexit, will not have direct implications on the Falklands issue, represents a new stage in the “weakening” of British colonial policy, they assess in the Palacio San Martín.

Did Spain condition its Brexit approval in London sitting at a negotiating table to discuss the fate of the small territory under British rule and claimed by Spain, which was supported by the EU and which has then forced Downing Street to agree to a bilateral meeting with Madrid.

Great Britain having left the European community, its overseas colonial enclaves no longer benefit from the protection of the Lisbon Treaty, which gives them the same status as a State Party.“

On January 1, the UK’s departure from the EU was consummated and the Falkland Islands are no longer part of its Constitution, this legal vacuum now paves the way for Argentina to seek to add support from the countries of the old continent to its claim.

With Great Britain outside the European community, its overseas colonial enclaves are no longer protected by the Lisbon Treaty, which gives them the same status as a State Party.

Moreover, by being excluded from the post-Brexit trade agreement, between the EU and the United Kingdom, the archipelago will lose the trade, tax and customs advantages in the exchange of the islanders with the countries of the bloc of the EU,

In this context, The Argentine government will seek to “deepen joint work with Spain to bring to international organizations their respective claims of sovereignty over the Malvinas and Gibraltar”, Secretary of the Falklands, Antarctica and South Atlantic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Daniel Filmus, came to Telam.

Argentina has signed an agreement with Spain for the mutual recognition of sovereignty over these territories, which includes a commitment to work together in multilateral organizations. The clearest example is found in the area of ​​the Ibero-American Summit.

<< The Falklands and Gibraltar are the two cases which, submitted to the Special Committee for Decolonization, recognize the existence of a sovereignty dispute in which territorial integrity prevails and the principle of the self-determination of peoples is not theirs. applicable. In both cases, the international community urges that the dispute be resolved through bilateral negotiations, ”Filmus recalled.

If Spain’s relative geopolitical weight places it in a different position from that of Argentina, for Filmus, the fact that England had to agree to bilaterally negotiate the conditions of the new situation in Gibraltar “opens up new perspectives for the reestablishment of a direct dialogue between Argentina and the United Kingdom for the sovereignty of the Falklands “.

But unlike the “umbrella of sovereignty” formula used by the governments of Spaniard Pedro Sánchez and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in negotiations for Gibraltar, Argentina are unwilling to quash their claim over the Malvinas at a possible negotiating table with the UK.

“We believe that Brexit is an opportunity for the Falklands cause to also resume bilateral dialogue between the United Kingdom and Argentina. In our case, it must comply with the provisions of UN resolution 2065, in which the UK continues to violate, ”Filmus told Telam.

In this sense, he ratified that for the Argentine government “the way of dialogue is the only one that can lead us to a peaceful and final solution of the territorial dispute” and added: “The United Kingdom must not miss this opportunity” .

“The way of dialogue is the only one which can lead us to a peaceful and final solution of the territorial dispute”“

Daniel Filmus

Argentina’s position enjoys the support of multilateral forums which, through numerous declarations, have insisted on the call for dialogue, among which the OAS, the Group of 77+ China, the Ibero-American Summit, Celac, Mercosur, Parlasur , the Africa-South America Summit (Asa and South America-Arab Countries Summit (Aspa).

Similarities and differences between the two claims

The Malvinas and Gibraltar cases have points of agreement, but also substantial differences in terms of the legal and historical volume of their claims.

During the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714), Spain signed, with the Netherlands and Great Britain, the so-called Treaty of Utrecht, a peace agreement by which it ceded the territory which then occupied Gibraltar in the United Kingdom, unlike Argentina. which upheld its claim during the 188 years of British occupation of the South Atlantic islands.

Beyond Gibraltar, British colonialism suffered from the withdrawal of support from its former European partners.

In 2019, the European Union did not accompany the United Kingdom in its dispute against the State of Mauritius over the Chagos Archipelago and the UN assembly ordered the British government to restore these territories in six months.

On this occasion, the British position was rejected by 114 votes to 6, among which only one European country (Hungary) accompanied the United Kingdom.

For the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, all this shows that there is “a clear weakening of EU political support for the UK and also a general realization that there is no more room for colonialism in the 21st century”.

Added to this is the unilateral declaration, which, with the agreement of all member countries, Mercosur issued last year, which establishes that for any negotiations with the EU, the legislation in force in the Malvinas is the ‘Argentina, a condition applicable in the event the UK tries to advance a free trade agreement with the regional bloc.