European Commission warns Catalunya: “If you become independent, you're out of the EU”
European Commission warns Catalunya: “If you become independent, you're out of the EU”
THE European Commission has reiterated to Catalunya that if it becomes an independent nation, it would automatically be outside the Union and would have to reapply.
“If part of a member State becomes a separate country, it will be considered a 'third State' and European treaties would cease to apply to them,” says spokesman Margaritis Schinas.
“I can confirm that the position of European Commission chairman Jean-Claude Juncker [pictured] would remain along the same lines as the EC has been consistently stating since 2004, when its previous chairman Romano Prodi said the same.”
Schinas added that for a region opting for secession from its country to be able to form part of the EU again, 'it would have to reapply for membership'.
He recalled that during the European Parliamentary election campaign leading up to May 2014, Juncker 'made it clear' in his interviews with the Spanish press that if Catalunya separated from Spain, it would, by default, mean its exit from the EU.
Pro-independence party in Catalunya, Junts Pel Sí ('together for the 'yes' vote') responded to Schinas' declarations by saying this was not true and 'the EU couldn't just kick Catalunya out'.
Recently, UK prime minister David Cameron warned the regional government along the same lines, pointing out that basic knowledge of European and international law was enough to show that a seceded territory would have to join the back of the queue, behind all the other applicants awaiting consideration.
