Catalan president 21-point document dismissed by Spain as ‘monologue’

Spain’s president Pedro Sánchez has closed the door to negotiating a 21-point document put forward by his Catalan counterpart Quim Torra during their meeting a week ago.

Sánchez referred to a joint statement by both governments, in which Madrid and Catalonia reassured their commitment to dialogue and pledged to find a "political proposal with widespread support." The Spanish leader said that "anything other than that are just monologues."

The exact content of the document remains unknown, as neither Torra nor Sánchez disclosed all the 21 proposals.

The Catalan and Spanish presidents met amid great pressure from both sides, as many pro-independence supporters dismissed the visit of the Spanish government to hold a cabinet meeting in Barcelona as a provocation, and hardline unionists saw the meeting between presidents as a concession from Pedro Sánchez.

Some feared that tensions between Madrid and Catalonia would raise again following the meeting between presidents, as pro-independence groups called demonstrations to reject the cabinet meeting.

Last week, both leaders were trying to preserve the fragile dialogue the two sides established after the Socialist leader unexpectedly came to power last spring, with votes from pro-independence parties.