Rocky relations: Gibraltar demands return of stolen concrete block from Spain
Spain’s far-right Vox tells the Rock: ‘If you want it, come get it’
The dispute between Gibraltar and Spain has reignited as the British overseas territory has issued a renewed demand for the return of a concrete block stolen by a Spanish far-right politician in 2014.
The block, which was part of an artificial reef created to prevent Spanish fishermen from fishing in the area, has been boldly on display at the Vox party’s headquarters in Madrid since its removal.
As innocuous as it sounds, this incident sparked one of the most serious diplomatic crises between Spain and the UK in recent times. Back then, 10-year prison sentences were called for. Today, it threatens to derail the already fragile negotiations about the future of the Rock as a pst-Brexit UK-EU land border.
The incident dates back to 2013 when tensions flared between London and Madrid over the creation of the artificial reef in the waters off Gibraltar. The overseas government dropped 70 concrete blocks into the bay, which Spanish fishermen claimed made working in the area impossible.
In response, Javier Ortega Smith, the secretary general of Vox, removed one of the blocks from beneath the waterline with the help of Spanish fishermen and divers. Like a scene from a spy movie, the operation was so covert and extreme that it made headlines all over the world.
The fact that the political party chose to give it pride of place in their headquarters, in front of a huge picture of the Rock, certainly didn’t help matters.
Gibraltar issued a warrant for Ortega Smith’s arrest and sentenced him to a 10-year prison sentence for theft, but this couldn’t be enforced outside of the British territory.
Now, all these years later, on the occasion of National Day in Gibraltar this week, Chief Minister Fabián Picardo renewed his appeal for the block’s return, stressing that it had been paid for by the Rock’s taxpayers. He added that he had submitted an official claim to Madrid for the concrete “that Vox stole from our waters.”
“We will never surrender any part of our sovereignty, jurisdiction or control,” so “when one of our sovereign assets has been stolen... we will not rest until we get it back, no matter how long it takes,” he said.
However, Javier Ortega Smith does not seem very interested in returning the block, taunting Picardo on social media by writing: “If you dare, come and get it yourself.”
The dispute has done little to ease tensions between Gibraltar and Spain, with a November deadline looming for high-level talks aimed at signing a treaty over the future of Gibraltar following Brexit.
Held every September 10 since 1992, Gibraltar National Day commemorates the first referendum on the sovereignty of the Rock in 1967, when Gibraltarians voted to remain under British administration, with their own institutions.
Images: Vox on X
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