ALDE’s leaders visit President Puigdemont and the Catalan Minister for Foreign Affairs

Barcelona (CNA).- The President of the Association of Liberal and Democrats of Europe (ALDE) group, MEP Hans Van Baalen, visited this Monday the Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, and the Catalan Minister for Foreign Affairs, former MEP Raül Romeva. The meeting took place amid the controversy surrounding the recent suspension of the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs, after the Spanish Constitutional Court (TC) considered the Catalan government to have exceeded the competences in matters of foreign action specified in the Catalan Statute of Autonomy. Van Baalen, who has repeatedly defended Catalonia’s right to decide its political future, was joined by ALDE’s general secretary, Jacob Moroza-Rasmussen and political adviser, Laura Laussade. Liberal party CDC’s spokeswoman and ALDE vice president, Marta Pascal, also attended the meeting, together with Spanish Parliament MP and the President of the Catalan foundation ‘Llibertat i Democràcia’, Jordi Xuclà.

The visit shows ALDE’s “explicit support” for the Catalan process, stated Pascal, in an interview with Spanish news agency, EFE. Indeed, Van Baalen has repeatedly defended Catalonia’s right to decide its political future. Pascal is also CDC's spokeswoman, the Catalan liberal party which belongs to the ALDE group in the European Parliament. Indeed, before meeting President Puigdemont and the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs Raül Romeva, the ALDE representatives held a meeting with CDC’s leaders.

A controversial moment for Catalonia’s foreign action

The visit of ALDE’s leaders comes a few days after the Spanish TC decided to suspend the Catalan Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The magistrates accepted the appeal presented by the Spanish executive, which considers the Catalan government to have exceeded the competences in matters of foreign action specified in the Catalan Statute of Autonomy. Thus, the new Ministry and its competences will be suspended, at first for five months, which is the period that the TC has to study whether the new Ministry is in line with the Spanish Constitution. In November, the TC unanimously approved the suspension of the Parliament's declaration of independence as well as the appeal made by the Spanish government to stop the reform of Catalonia’s Tax Agency.