“Spain and the UK could be shooting their own foot if they vetoed accession of independent Catalonia / Scotland ” Günther Dauwen on #Fragmegration

News / 05.5.15

What would happen [in the EU] if there was a Catalan and Scottish Independence process? asked himelf Günther Dauwen at the beginning of his speech for the Fragmegration- The Double dimension of EU enlargement (Internal and External) conference at the the Institut d’Etudes Européennes (IEE) of the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB).

He believes that “Spain and the UK could be shooting their own foot” if they vetoed accession of the newly independent Catalonia or Scotland “some would claim that the rest of Spain and rest of the UK after independence would also need to re-apply to the EU [since having lost a part of their territory and population] “they are no longer to be considered the same state that joined the Union”.

When reflecting on Internal Enlargement of the EU he believes that “the democratic, transparent and grassroots movements that advocate giving a voice to the citizens to decide upon their own future [is] an example of 21st century Democracy” so provided that “EU treaties do not regulate on this specific issue” “who and under which authority will deny European citizenship and European rights to peoples who have enjoyed both” for a very long time.