EU says suspension of Catalan self-rule ‘within the constitutional order’
European Commission spokesman reiterates support in Brussels for “the constitutional and legal arrangements of Spain”
margaritis schinas
Brussels on blocked pro-indy websites: “Judges have ordered this”
EC spokesman refuses to link these measures to freedom of speech violations, rejecting comparisons "to Turkey"
European Commission: The 27-S elections are “a domestic issue for Spain”
“The EC does not comment on regional elections” stated EC spokesperson Margaritis Schinas. He added that the EC won’t express “a position” regarding the 27-S results in Catalonia, which it considers “a domestic issue for Spain”.The EC spokesperson confirmed that EC President Jean-Claude Juncker “was informed” of the election results but that he “didn’t have any immediate contact” to evaluate them with the Spanish nor the Catalan governments. “I have nothing else to say” stated Schinas, who denied any consideration of whether the EU should promote dialogue between Madrid and Barcelona. However, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Anne Brasseur, stated at a press conference that “the vote of the people of Catalonia must be respected” and added that “there must be dialogue from both sides”.
European Commission doesn’t want “to influence” the Catalan elections as they are “a choice of voters”
European Commission vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis assured this Friday that Brussels’ intention “is not to influence votes in member states and regions”, referring to the upcoming 27-S Catalan elections, and outlined that they are “a choice of voters”. Dombrovskis comments came after European Commission spokesman Margarities Schinas warned on Thursday that in the event of becoming an independent state, Catalonia “will become a third country and may apply to become a member of the EU”. Dombrovskis, former Prime Minister of Latvia and European Commissioner for the Euro and Social Dialogue recalled that the European Commission “does not normally comment on party politics in member states or their regions”. “We are ready to work with democratically elected or appointed authorities of member states”, he emphasised
Brussels insists that an independent Catalonia would remain outside the EU
The European Commission reiterated this Thursday that an independent Catalonia would be kept out of the EU and would need to reapply for admission. “If a part of a Member State ceases to be a part of that state” because it becomes independent, “the treaties will no longer apply to that territory”, stated European Commission spokesman, Margaritis Schinas. The new independent state “will become a third country and may apply to become a member of the EU”, he added. Schinas clarified that this statement was not the result of any official analysis of the consequences of Catalonia’s independence and said that the European Commission would only carry out such a study if Spain or another EU Member State requested it.
2.3 million Europeans voting do not "deserve" a specific comment from the European Commission
The European Commission has been asked about November 9's participatory process in Catalonia, when 2.3 million citizens cast votes about independence from Spain, but refused to comment and downplayed the citizen mobilisation. After such a unique and massive citizen participation process, which was carried out in a "calm" and "successful" way, according to the delegation of observers from the European Parliament, the European Commission repeated that it was Spain's "internal" affair. The Spokesperson for the Brussels-based institution, Margaritis Schinas, stated that "it is not the European Commission's role to express an opinion about Member States' internal and constitutional organisation issues". Asked about whether the more than 2 million European citizens do not "deserve" a reaction from the Commission, Schinas stated "they deserve the words I just said; I have nothing else to say".