About that visit...

I’m not going to write in any detail about yesterday’s visit to Gibraltar by Miguel Angel Moratinos, Spain’s foreign affairs minister. Acres of copy have already been published about this trip in English and Spanish and if you want to read the official statement in detail, you can do it here. (Also worth watching is this astounding attack on Moratinos by Pedro J. Ramirez, editor of El Mundo...)

Make no mistake about this, yesterday’s visit was of monumental importance. The presence of the Spanish foreign minister in Gibraltar was an incredibly powerful image, one that has brought Moratinos some heavy flack from the Spanish opposition. Gibraltar’s own opposition parties have also criticised Peter Caruana for his decision to go ahead with the meeting while the waters issue remained unresolved. It was a risky move for both of them. (The UK parties and press were largely indifferent to the whole thing...)

Personally, I don't think anyone gained or lost any ground on the core issues as a result of yesterday’s meeting. Each side’s red lines on sovereignty are clearly marked out. So Spain will never renounce its sovereignty claim? Well, fine, but Gibraltar will never be Spanish against the wishes of its people.

Beyond all of that, why not talk about matters that will benefit both Gib and the Campo? Most of the people I spoke to in the street seemed to agree. The whole dynamic of the so-called ‘Gibraltar question’ (I hate that phrase, but it works…) is shifting dramatically. The old paranoia is fading.

That doesn’t mean Gib must not remain alert to threats, particularly as the fine detail of each area of cooperation is hammered out in the coming months. We still have a date in court over the waters row.

My view? Dialogue on equal terms must also be welcomed, but Gib must proceed with caution. Others, of course, have a different take on the whole thing.