GIBRALTAR, August 5 (RAPSI, Ingrid Burke) - The UK and Gibraltar reacted Sunday to reports that Spain is entertaining strict measures against the contentious British territory, such as EUR 50 border crossing fees and an airspace closure, in the latest manifestation of a longstanding dispute over fishing rights.

As tensions with Spain escalate over the present Gibraltar dispute, the UK’s Foreign Office has vowed its continuing commitment to Gibraltar and its people and vowed to seek an explanation from Spain “following reports that the Spanish government might target Gibraltar with further measures,” according to an official statement released Sunday.

Meanwhile, an official statement issued on behalf of the Gibraltarian government referred to statements attributed by media reports to Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo as “clearly reminiscent of the politics and tactics on Gibraltar deployed by the fascist regime led by Franco in the 50's and 60's.”

Over the weekend, Spanish newspaper ABC published an interview conducted with Garcia-Margallo, wherein the foreign minister reportedly stated that Spain was entertaining such restrictive measures as EUR 50 border-crossing fees for entry into and exit from Gibraltar, heightened tax scrutiny for Gibraltarians owning property in Spain, as well as restricting the small British territory’s airspace. According to the interview, he reasoned that the border-crossing fees would assist fishermen impacted by the destruction of their fishing grounds.

Gibraltar’s statement quoted the territory’s Chief Minister Fabian Picardo as having described the media statements as perhaps a reaction to calls for moderation: “I believe that the Partido Popular (Spain’s ruling party) is starting to feel that pressure and is therefore trying to manipulate the media to sustain its neanderthal approach. None of this will deter Her Majesty's Government of Gibraltar from acting as we consider may be in the best interests of our Nation. Gibraltar and the United Kingdom will not be able to stand idly by whilst Spain takes illegal action."

Tensions escalated in June when Spanish authorities fired on a jet ski. After the firing incident the UK Foreign Office issued a statement on behalf of Minister for Europe David Lidington: “I spoke today with Spanish Minister for the European Union, Íñigo Mendez de Vigo, in order to protest in the strongest terms following an incident on 23 June in British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW). During an illegal incursion by a Guardia Civil vessel, a Guardia Civil officer fired a weapon. I made clear that the discharge of a weapon in or near Gibraltar is completely unacceptable. I urged Señor Mendez de Vigo to investigate urgently and to take action to ensure that this will not happen again.” Lidington added that he had instructed the Madrid Chargé D’Affaires to echo the message to Spain’s Foreign Ministry.

Then on Friday, the Foreign Office announced that the Spanish Ambassador to the UK had been summoned in connection with long delays at the Gibraltarian border, that – according to the statement – were the result of “wholly disproportionate” checks by Spanish authorities on vehicles entering and exiting Gibraltar.

In connection with the issue, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister of State Hugo Swire stated: “Disruption to border flows has a direct impact on the prosperity and well-being of communities on both sides of the border. The UK Government’s position is that these delays are unjustified, unacceptable and have no place at a border between EU partners.”

Picardo dialed it up a notch in an interview with the BBC’s Today program Monday, likening Spain’s statements to ones you would more likely expect from North Korea: “what we’ve seen this weekend is saber rattling of the sort that we haven't seen for some time. You see, the things that [Garcia-Margallo] has said – they’re more reminiscent of the type of statement you’d hear from North Korea than from an EU partner.”

On Sunday, the UK Foreign Office had released a statement conveying the UK’s commitment not to compromise on Gibraltarian sovereignty: “Our differences with Spain on Gibraltar will be resolved by political means through our relationship as EU partners, not through disproportionate measures such as the border delays we have seen over the past week.”

The Foreign Office reiterated this sentiment Monday with the following Tweet: “Differences on #Gibraltar will be resolved by political means through relationship as EU partners.”

The statement added that the UK would seek an explanation from Spain in light of reports that the latter’s authorities may pursue stricter measures against Gibraltar.
Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory. According to a policy backgrounder on the UK Government website, successive UK Governments have ensured that reasonable provision of assistance to overseas territories has remained a top spending priority in terms of the international development budget.

Article 73 of the UN Charter mandates a strong level of commitment to the overseas territories of member states, stipulating in part: “Members of the United Nations which have or assume responsibilities for the administration of territories whose peoples have not yet attained a full measure of self-government recognize the principle that the interests of the inhabitants of these territories are paramount, and accept as a sacred trust the obligation to promote to the utmost, within the system of international peace and security established by the present Charter, the well-being of the inhabitants of these territories.”