London wants to make sure that Gibraltar is included in any transition deal with the EU when the United Kingdom leaves the 27-nation bloc.
The EU has drawn fire from Britain over its insistence that in order to have the strategic rock included in a transition agreement Britain needs to discuss the issue directly with Spain and a document, due to be published on Wednesday, is expected to confirm Brussels' stance on the issue, according to The Guardian.
“If Britain’s overseas territories aren’t included in the transition guidelines it would be a total contradiction in the EU’s own position,” a source in the British government told The Guardian.
He also lashed out against what he described as the EU’s inconsistent and contradictory position on the sticky issue of Gibraltar which has long been a bone of contention between Britain and Spain.
During last week’s EU summit in Brussels, Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy insisted that the status of Gibraltar be part of any UK-EU deal, including on the transition period.
Last week, the EU leaders agreed “to move on to the second phase" in Brexit talks after “sufficient progress” had been made on the first phase of the talks to allow negotiations to start on a transition deal and a final trade agreement.
READ MORE: Gibraltar's Dilemma: What Awaits British Overseas Territory After Brexit?
Brexit negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union started on June 19, and are due to be completed by the end of March 2019.
