24 June 2016•Update: 25 June 2016
By Alyssa McMurtry
MADRID
Just days before Spain’s weekend elections, Britain’s decision to leave the EU garnered widespread criticism from Spanish politicians, yet also led the foreign minister to quickly raise the question of Gibraltar’s sovereignty.
Addressing the Brexit, acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy held a special press conference Friday morning calling the decision a cause for “sadness” while pleading for “calm and serenity” in those who could be especially affected.
While the Brexit has not been a hot campaign issue so far, politicians have already started using the historic vote as political fodder ahead of Sunday’s tight elections.
“What happened is the confluence between populism and the irresponsible right-wing. The populists have told British society that false solutions of populism can resolve real problems,” said Pedro Sanchez, the Socialist leader on Spanish radio.
Sunday will see Spain's second general elections in just over six months, after December’s polls failed to produce a government
The leader of the far-left Podemos, Pablo Iglesias, also came out against the decision.
“It’s a sad day for Europe. We need to change direction. No one wants to leave a just and solid Europe. We need to change Europe,” he tweeted.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel García Margallo already pounced on Gibraltar’s vulnerabilities triggered by the Brexit, causing an outpouring of Spanish nationalist support, with “Gibraltar Español” becoming a trending Twitter topic.
"The Spanish flag on the Rock is much closer than it was before,” said García Margallo on Spanish radio, adding that that "does not mean I am celebrating the result".
He said Spain will aim for bilateral talks to seek co-sovereignty and eventually Spanish control of Gibraltar, a British overseas territory on Spain’s Mediterranean coast near the Atlantic.
Spain has historically wreaked havoc in Gibraltar by blocking its borders, and more recent Spanish attempts to set up border tolls have been blocked by the EU.
Unlike voters in Britain, 96 percent of Gibraltar voters voted to stay in the EU on Thursday. Local media reports the government of Gibraltar has called a crisis cabinet.
