if Spain applied its reasons for claiming Gibraltar to the rest of its territory, it would have to give up land to Portugal.

Spanish Crown Prince Felipe said that Britain and Spain need to resolve their “historical bilateral dispute” over Gibraltar, as Prince Charles visited Madrid on March 30.

This comes two months after Spain banned American aircraft flying to or from Gibraltar from traveling in Spanish airspace.

“I express my wish that our authorities make progress towards a solution to our historic bilateral dispute which is yet to be resolved,” said Felipe at an official dinner with the prince.

Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero also raised the issue, calling for “cooperation” to solve the dispute.

Panorama, a Gibraltar news service, points out that by describing the dispute over Gibraltar as “bilateral” the Spanish are trying to characterize the issue of Gibraltar sovereignty as something to be decided between the UK and Spain, while ignoring the wishes of the people of Gibraltar.

This is not surprising, as in 2002 Gibraltarians voted overwhelming to remain part of Britain.

Spain’s defense agreement with the United States says: “Aircraft departing from or heading to Gibraltar are forbidden to overfly Spanish airspace or to land in Spain. They cannot even file a flight plan which includes a Spanish airport as their alternative destination. The only exception are [sic] humanitarian missions which have been previously authorized and emergencies.”

These regulations entered into force on February 1, and were leaked to the Spanish press.

The regulations “once again serve to show that Madrid will use every conceivable opportunity to undermine and erode the position of Gibraltar internationally,” says Gibraltar’s Socialist Labor Party on its website.

“It is quite incredible that this no-fly zone should be formalized at a time when there is supposed to be a so-called improved climate in relations between Gibraltar and Spain,” it writes. “Indeed, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States are all supposed to be allies in nato, and yet the Spanish government continues to behave with a degree of hostility towards Gibraltar as if this were not the case. There is also the additional point that the military interests of nato and of the West in general could be put at risk by the continued Spanish obsession whenever it comes to Gibraltar.”

The Spanish have clearly not given up on Gibraltar, despite the fact that Gibraltarians don’t want to be part of Spain and, as British Member of the European Parliament Daniel Hannan pointed out a couple of years ago, if Spain applied its reasons for claiming Gibraltar to the rest of its territory, it would have to give up land to Portugal.

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