UK, EU, Spain make 'further progress' on Gibraltar talks

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) – The UK, EU, and Spain had a "constructive and productive" discussion on Thursday, resulting in "further progress" on Gibraltar talks, according to a joint statement.

European Commission Executive Vice-President Maros Sefcovic, Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy, together with the Chief Minister of Gibraltar Fabian Picardo, met in Brussels for the third time on the issue.

The joint statement issued following the talks noted that the meeting built on significant progress made at previous meetings on April 12 and May 16.

"Today’s discussions were constructive and productive, resulting in further progress on the complex issues of negotiations, namely in the area of people and goods," it added.

The statement also underlined that the meeting reaffirmed the parties' shared commitment to reaching an EU-UK Agreement that will bring confidence, legal certainty, and stability to the people of the whole region while safeguarding all parties’ legal positions.

"They all agreed to remain in constant contact, with teams to work closely and intensely on outstanding areas," it added.

In the 2016 Brexit referendum, the majority of people voted in favor of the withdrawal of the country from the EU.

After the Brexit agreement was signed by representatives from Britain and the EU on Jan. 24, 2020, the UK officially withdrew from the bloc on Jan. 31 of that year.