Treaty negotiations start on Monday in Brussels

Negotiations for a UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar’s post-Brexit future with the bloc will start on Monday in Brussels.

The news was revealed by Maros Sefcovic, the vice president of the European Commission, on Twitter on Friday morning after he spoke to UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.

Mr Sefcovic said he looked forward to “constructive discussions” in respect of Gibraltar.

A good first call with UK Foreign Secretary @trussliz today. Looking forward to constructive 🇪🇺🇬🇧discussions in respect of Gibraltar. Following the @EUCouncil adoption of the mandate, the first round of negotiations to take place in Brussels on 11 October.

— Maroš Šefčovič🇪🇺 (@MarosSefcovic) October 8, 2021

Earlier this week, the European Council adopted the bloc’s negotiating position for the talks.

The EU said its aim was to negotiate a “broad and balanced agreement” that reflected the Rock’s unique circumstances “…without prejudice to the issues of sovereignty and jurisdiction.”

The EU’s final negotiating mandate has not been published but a number of changes have been made to the draft position published by the European Commission in July.

The changes include adding a specific reference to the role of Frontex in the application of any Schengen checks inside Gibraltar.