Spain sees ‘no direct link’ between treaty and its defence relations with US

The Spanish Government sees “no direct link” between the UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar and Spain’s military relationship with the US or the security of the Strait of Gibraltar.

Madrid set out its position in response to a series of questions in the Spanish Congress from the Partido Popular, which had probed whether the treaty would have any bearing on Spain/US defence relations, including the US base at Rota.

“In relation to the questions referred to, it should be noted that no direct link is identified between the agreement between the Kingdom of Spain, the United Kingdom and the European Union, relating to the status of Gibraltar, on which the Minister for Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation reported to Congress on October 8, 2025, and either shared security in the Strait of Gibraltar, Spanish-US cooperation on defence matters, or the use of the Rota Naval Base (Cádiz),” the Spanish Government said in the parliamentary response.

“The surveillance, control and response capabilities of the [Spanish] Armed Forces and the competent bodies in the Strait of Gibraltar remain fully guaranteed, and the operational capability and security of the Rota Naval Base also continue to be assured within the framework of the Defence Cooperation Agreement between Spain and the United States.”

The European Commission confirmed earlier this month that negotiators from the EU, the UK, Gibraltar and Spain had successfully completed work on the legal text of a UK/EU treaty for Gibraltar’s post-Brexit relation with the bloc.

The text is currently undergoing legal review by the EU and the UK before moving to ratification and the signature and conclusion of the agreement.

It is not clear how long the legal review will take, though the consensus is it will be some weeks before it is concluded.

The Commission has said publicly that it believes the treaty is an “EU-only agreement”, meaning ratification for the EU will be only in the European Parliament and not in the national parliaments of each member state.

For the UK, the ratification process will start with a motion in the Gibraltar Parliament calling on the UK to ratify the treaty, after which it will have to be approved in the UK Parliament.

In the UK system, the treaty will follow the Constitutional Reform Act [CRAG] procedure, which involves the treaty being laid in the Houses of Parliament for 21 sitting days.

If there are no objections during this time, it is ratified automatically, though there will be opportunity for debate.