The Diplomat
Gibraltar Government reacted yesterday to Spain’s protest at the harassment of Spanish vessels in the waters surrounding the colony, affirming British sovereignty over them and expressing its confidence that the incidents will not affect negotiations on its future.
In a communiqué issued by the government led by Fabian Picardo, it stated that it “has no doubts about the British sovereignty of the waters surrounding Gibraltar”, and added that “unnecessary incidents in these waters should be avoided, as they pose a risk to the crews of the vessels involved”.
The Gibraltar authorities recall that ‘issues relating to illegal fishing have long been a point of contention’ and blame this on the fact that ‘Gibraltar has a stricter standard of environmental protection than Spain with regard to the use of nets and trawling’.
As for bunkering, a common practice in the disputed waters, the Picardo government claims that “Gibraltar’s bunkering regulations are recognised as having one of the highest standards internationally”.
After indicating that the Gibraltar Government “remains committed to reaching a satisfactory outcome for all parties to the UK-EU Treaty negotiations on the free movement of persons between Gibraltar and the EU and the consequent creation of a zone of shared prosperity in the surrounding area, they conclude: “The recent series of incidents should not have any effect on those positive negotiations which are awaiting the outcome of the investiture of a new government in Spain”.
