Nov 19 - Lidington ‘Strongly Condemns’ 21 Hour Incursion by Spanish Oceanographic Vessel
With the Spanish Oceanographic Vessel RV ‘Ramon Margalef’s surveillance of the bay lasting over 20 hours, despite warning from the Royal Navy for the ship to leave BGTW, both the Gibraltar Government and Europe Minister David Lidington have insisted that the incursion was intolerable.
The Minister explained that when challenged by radio the vessel responded that it was conducting survey work with the permission of the Spanish authorities and in the interests of the European Community. ‘This comes only two weeks after dangerous manoeuvres by a Spanish Guardia Civil vessel in the vicinity of Royal Navy vessels in British waters put lives at risk and resulted in a minor collision,’ he added.
Minister Lidington went on to say, ‘according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the waters around Gibraltar are indisputably British territorial waters, under United Kingdom sovereignty, in which only the United Kingdom has the right to exercise jurisdiction. Spain is a Party to this Convention and is fully aware of the legal position, yet has, over the past two years, increased the level of unlawful incursions by Spanish State vessels into British territorial waters from around five per month to around 40 per month.
‘I strongly condemn this provocative incursion and urge the Spanish government to ensure that it is not repeated. We stand ready to do whatever is required to protect Gibraltar’s sovereignty, economy and security. We believe that it is in the interests of Spain, Gibraltar and Britain to avoid incidents such as this that damage the prospects for establishing dialogue and cooperation. We remain confident of UK sovereignty over the whole of Gibraltar, including British Gibraltar Territorial Waters, and will respect the wishes of the people of Gibraltar.’
Similarly, the Gibraltar Government condemned the actions of the Ramon Margalef, claiming that the vessel came within 250 metres of the entrance to Gibraltar Harbour and sailed in close proximity to other ships at anchor in the Bay of Gibraltar. A Government spokesperson insisted that this led to a separate warning issued to them by the Gibraltar Port Authority on the grounds of safety to shipping.
They added, ‘It will be recalled that in May 2007 Spain requested the designation of Gibraltar’s territorial sea as if it were Spanish in EU environmental legislation. This was designated at the end of 2008. This act marked the intensification of Spanish pressure on British Gibraltar ‘Territorial Waters when different agencies of the Spanish state proceeded to challenge British sovereignty on a regular basis. The upholding of the British sovereignty of our waters is the constitutional responsibility of the Government of the United Kingdom and of the Royal Navy in particular.
‘The Royal Navy responded to the incursion as did the Royal Gibraltar Police (RGP). The maritime assets of Gibraltar took action to disrupt the activity of the Spanish vessel, even though both the Navy and the RGP assets are considerably smaller in size and capability.
‘The Government considers that the actions of the “Ramon Margalef” represent an intolerable intrusion into British waters and constitutes a clear violation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). There has been close consultation between the Gibraltar Government, the Foreign Office, the Ministry of Defence and the Royal Gibraltar Police throughout the incident.’
