Spain and the UK announced a deal to maintain free movement to and from Gibraltar after Brexit. During Brexit referendum, 96 per cent of the vote in Gibraltar were in favour of remaining in the EU.
- Gibraltar is being placed in the Schengen area, with Spain acting as a guarantor.
- The Schengen passport-free zone includes 22 countries from the European Union (EU), and four countries –Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein. The UK has never been a part of this zone.
All you want to know about Gibraltar
- Gibraltar is a small portion of land (6.8 sq km) on the southern tip of the Iberian peninsula that Britain controls but Spain claims as its own.
- The area has been the subject of intense dispute between Spain and Britain for centuries.
- The small territory is connected to Spain by a small strip of land and is surrounded by sea on three sides.
- It serves as the only opening from the Atlantic Ocean into the Mediterranean Sea.
- When Britain joined the EU in 1973, Gibraltar was a British colony, but was reclassified as a British Overseas Territory in 2002.
- In two referendums, one in 1967 and the other in 2002, Gibraltarians overwhelmingly voted to remain a British territory.
- Currently, the territory is self-governing in all aspects, however, defence and foreign policies are managed by the UK, and Gibraltarians hold British citizenship.
(Source: Indian Express)
