Ruling Catalan and Spanish parties agree not to meet for dialogue table until after elections

Esquerra Republicana (ERC) and the Socialists have agreed not to hold another meeting of the dialogue table between governments until after the upcoming electoral cycle.

The dialogue table is to promote negotiations between the Spanish and Catalan administrations to resolve the territorial conflict, and has been held periodically between administrations ever since early 2020.  

Yet, due to the upcoming Catalan and European elections on May 12 and June 9 respecitvely, both parties leading the talks have decided to hold off on the dialogue table in the short-term.

As the Catalan News Agency has learned, both governments agree that it makes no sense to force a meeting in the middle of the pre-campaign.

The agreement signed between ERC and PSOE to name Pedro Sánchez Prime Minister also included that the dialogue table would meet again in the first quarter of 2024, but sources from the Catalan executive say they do not want any meeting that is just "a photo."

In a joint statement from the two parties, both say they have met "discreetly and regularly" to advance the political situation since the investiture agreement.

They also revealed that the meetings have been held with an "international mechanism" that had the role of accompanying, verifying, and monitoring the entire negotiation process.

"All sides involved back the use of dialogue, and negotiation continues as a way to find a political solution," the statement concludes.