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Spain takes UK to UN over Gibraltar
[Iran Press TV] Spain will take its dispute with Britain over the sovereignty of the Gibraltar Rock to the United Nations, Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs says, after the provocative projection of British Queen's giant image on the Rock earlier this week.The image of the Queen was projected on the northern face of the rock next to Britain's flag on Tuesday night as the youngest son of the Queen and his wife visited the disputed Overseas British Territory as part of Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Reports said the image could be seen from miles across the border from Spain, where the Gibraltar Rock is located. Spain said on Monday that Madrid considers the royals' visit with "disagreement and unease." Now, in the wake of Gibraltar's provocative move, a spokesman at Spain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs says Spain's Ambassador to the UN will refer the sovereignty dispute to the UN Decolonization Committee on Friday to call for negotiations with Britain on the future of the roughly seven square-kilometer area. "Spain will reiterate its position and talk about the how the situation has been developing in recent months," the spokesman told The Daily Telegrah. "We will ask the UK to engage in conversation over sovereignty." This comes as a source at the ministry also underlined Spain's outrage about the Queen's image move. "We don't approve of what was obviously a symbolic show of sovereignty during a time when we should be working towards solving problems," the source said. Britain invaded and captured Gibraltar in 1704 and Spain ceded its sovereignty to Britain nine years later as part of the treaty of Utrecht, yet the details of the treaty are a point of contention for both sides. The UN Special Committee on Decolonization lists the name of the area alongside other British colonies, including Las Malvinas (Falklands) that should be decolonized. Posted by: Fred 2012-06-15 |
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