User talk:XabiChristo/sandbox

The European Union has been slow in responding to the growing tensions between Spain and Catalonia. Leaders within the European Union have been cautious of the issue. With populist movements growing in popularity across Europe, European Union officials don’t want to intervene and set a precedent for future movements. The European Union’s Commission Chief Jean- Claude Juncker said if Catalonia were granted independence they would no longer be members of the European Union. Catalonia would be able to regain status as a member of the European Union, but would have to apply. The European Union was called to address the situation again after Catalonia’s illegal independence referendum was shut down by Spanish forces through controversial tactics. Though most European Union officials stayed silent, Belgian prime-minister Charles Michel made a statement via twitter condemning violence and urging unity amongst Catalonia and Spain. The lack of activity from the European Union can in some part be attributed to Article 4.2 of the Treaty of Lisbon, which prevents the European Union from interfering with state functions, such as maintaining “law and order”. The Spanish Government has declared this issue as an internal dispute, a classification that will make it challenging for the European Union to have any meaningful impact.

XabiChristo (talk) 23:17, 29 November 2017 (UTC)XabiChristo