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Gibraltar Not to Agree on Joint Sovereignty With Spain in Case of Brexit

© AFP 2023 / Jorge GuerreroA picture taken on March 17, 2016 shows the Rock of Gibraltar with Spain in background.
A picture taken on March 17, 2016 shows the Rock of Gibraltar with Spain in background. - Sputnik International
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No form of Gibraltar’s joint sovereignty with Spain may be on the table, even if Britain secedes from the European Union after the referendum, the Chief Minister of this British overseas territory Fabian Picardo told Sputnik.

Gibraltar - Sputnik International
In Case of Brexit, Spain Can Close Borders With Gibraltar - Official
MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier in June, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel García-Margallo reiterated the idea of sharing sovereignty over Gibraltar with the United Kingdom if the Britain decides to leave the European Union, saying that it would allow Gibraltar to maintain access to the EU single market.

“Gibraltar will never ever agree to Joint Sovereignty with Spain or any other nation. We are 100-percent British,” Picardo said.

On June 23 the UK will hold a referendum on whether to stay in the EU or leave the bloc. In case of Brexit, Gibraltar's thriving services-based economy may see a dramatic decrease, as it largely relies on access to the EU single market.

Nevertheless, Fabian Picardo refused to discuss possible losses for the region in case of Brexit.

“Our view is that the case for the UK and with it Gibraltar to remain in the European Union is so strong that we have to spend the next weeks campaigning ‎for everyone to vote to make staying in a reality. We won't be making any calculations for the alternative," he said.

Gibraltar, which enjoys broad autonomous powers, has been controlled by London since 1713, when Spain ceded the region to the UK, but now Madrid is still trying to return it back.

In 1967 and in 2002, Gibraltar held two referendums on its sovereignty, with majority of its 30,000 inhabitants rejecting the proposal to unite with Spain.

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