The Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, appears this Thursday before the corresponding committee of Congress with the aim of presenting the application of the agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom regarding Gibraltar, as well as Spain's position regarding the evolution of the conflict in the Middle East.
The agreement on Gibraltar, which will regulate the integration of the Rock in its relationship with the EU after Brexit, was released last February 26, culminating more than four years of conversations and subsequent to the political understanding reached on June 11.
This new framework contemplates the creation of a shared prosperity zone between the British colony and the Campo de Gibraltar. Albares requested to go to Congress to detail its content at the end of February, but the session will finally be held in the midst of the pre-campaign for the Andalusian regional elections on the upcoming May 17.
Article 2 of the text specifies that what was agreed will not "affect the respective legal positions" of the United Kingdom and Spain "regarding sovereignty and jurisdiction and will not constitute the basis for any affirmation or denial of sovereignty". This section has drawn strong criticism from Vox, which demanded Albares' appearance and reproaches him for not having used the negotiation to reinforce the claim of Spanish sovereignty over the Rock.
Demolition of the Fence and controls in Schengen
Among the central elements of the pact is the demolition of the Fence, since it is foreseen to eliminate all physical barriers that hinder the transit of people and transfer the controls to the port and airport of Gibraltar.
At these points a double control will be established. First, the Gibraltarian authorities will intervene and, subsequently, the Spanish National Police, responsible for access controls to the Schengen area. Although the regulations of this borderless area will be applied, Gibraltar will not become integrated into Schengen. In the outbound direction, the double control will be carried out in reverse order.
Last April 1, the Twenty-Seven, meeting at ambassador level, unanimously endorsed the signing and provisional application of the agreement, which facilitates its entry into force on July 15, with a three-month delay compared to the schedule initially handled by Brussels and London.
The EU-UK Agreement on Gibraltar will complete the legal framework of relations between the EU and the United Kingdom established by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, which normalized ties after the consolidation of Brexit and which has been applied since 2021, without including the Rock in its scope.
With the political signal sent last week, the Twenty-Seven intend to address the urgency of advancing in the processing of a Treaty whose agreement was announced in December 2024, but whose lack of formal adoption could complicate the situation at the Fence given the imminent entry into force, on April 10, of the new EU external border control system, which will impose reinforced control at crossings with third countries.
The European Entry and Exit System of the Union (EES, for its acronym in English) began to be gradually implemented in the Member States last autumn, but its full operability is scheduled for this Friday, when the new digital register that will replace the manual stamping of passports at the borders of the Schengen area must function at all accesses to the European Union.
Sources from the Ministry of Interior consulted by Europa Press indicate that the facilities and technical equipment necessary for control in the passage from Gibraltar to community territory are "operational and available", although without specifying the implementation schedule.
Relationship of Gibraltar with the EU and EES system
In any case, and beyond the technical preparation, the absence of application of the Treaty that defines Gibraltar's relationship with the European Union when the EES system comes into force implies, in practice, that this territory continues to be treated for border control purposes as a third country. In this way, travelers crossing from or to the Rock from Spanish soil should undergo registration in the new European system.
To avoid this gap, the Government has submitted to the European Commission a proposal to make the application of the EES more flexible at that point, although no details have emerged nor if Brussels —which generally opposes reviewing the calendar of the new border system— considers the Spanish initiative viable.
Airport sharing and customs union
Another of the issues of greatest interest in the Campo de Gibraltar, and on which the Spanish Government insisted during the negotiation, is the shared use of Gibraltar airport, built on the isthmus whose sovereignty by the United Kingdom Spain does not recognize. It is foreseen to constitute a joint venture between Spain and the United Kingdom, which will not be able to establish its headquarters in either of these two countries, but rather must be located in another EU member state.
Regarding flights, they may originate and terminate both in the United Kingdom and in any EU country, although only airlines authorized by Brussels and those that have permission from London will be able to operate these routes.
The agreement establishes a customs union between Gibraltar and the EU, which will allow the free movement of goods. To correct the current fiscal distortions between the tax rates of the Campo de Gibraltar and the Rock, the implementation of an indirect tax by Gibraltar is foreseen, with characteristics similar to VAT, which will be set at 15% from its entry into force and will increase in the following three years until reaching 17%.
The British Air Force base at Gibraltar airport is excluded from the agreement, and British or third-country military personnel who travel to the Rock will be exempt from the passport and visa controls typical of the Schengen area, without this implying the acquisition of permanent residence rights or domicile in this area.