MADRID (Sputnik) — The United Kingdom has finally triggered the EU withdrawal process by handing a formal letter to European Council President Donald Tusk. The talks on a departure deal are due to end in May 2019.
"We will not agree to any documents that will undermine Spain’s position on [Gibraltar] sovereignty or back Gibraltar’s economic activities that hurt Spain’s interests," Dastis said, adding Madrid should approve any terms of a Brexit deal that would be applied to the United Kingdom’s overseas territory.
29 March 2017, 21:57 GMT
Last June, most UK voters backed leaving the European Union. The decision will affect all UK dependencies, including Gibraltar, where a vast majority of its 30,000-strong population voted to stay.
Gibraltar was taken from Spain in 1704 and ceded to Britain in 1713. Madrid continues to lay claims to the region, despite two referendums showing most inhabitants upheld UK’s sovereignty.
