Gibraltar, commonly nicknamed “The Rock,” is an unusual political anachronism, a bastion of British colonial imperialism and 18th century European power politics caught in a 21st century geopolitical context. Gibraltar is one of the world’s most contested territories, the cause of annual tension between Britain and Spain, and one possible thorn in the future of political integration in the European Union. It continues to be of vital strategic importance, both in military and economic terms, as it guards the sole entrance to the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean and contains important NATO bases. Multilateral considerations must be at the heart of any tangible solution, respecting both individual territorial and democratic interests, while keeping in mind existing frameworks of international law. There must be mutual effort from all involved parties while acknowledging new developments in European integration.

Gibraltar became a Spanish territory after Ferdinand and Isabella’s military triumph over the Moors in 1492, but in 1704, Britain captured Gibraltar in the War of Spanish Succession and officially took control of the region after the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, which still serves as the legal basis for Gibraltar’s formal political attachment to Britain.

Spain made several attempts to retake Gibraltar militarily in the late 18th century, but was unsuccessful. Gibraltar became an official British crown colony in 1830, and the issue of its status was not broached again until 1963 at a meeting of the UN Special Committee on Decolonization. Despite Spanish efforts to reclaim sovereignty of the peninsula, Britain did not budge, and in 1969, Spanish dictator Francisco Franco instituted the border closure that lasted until 1985.

Since then, Gibraltarians have enjoyed a high level of self-government, especially under their own constitution, which was ratified in 1969. Despite UN General Assembly demands that Britain return sovereignty to Spain by 1996, no tangible agreement has been reached between the two states. Furthermore, Gibraltarians refuse to comply with any Spanish authority.

Perhaps what makes Gibraltar unique is that it is part of an unexpected three-way diplomatic battle. Spain considers Gibraltar a purely territorial sovereignty dispute between the current British administering power and itself as the territorial claimant. Likewise, Britain agrees with productive state-to-state discussions and favors joint-sovereignty that respects the rights of Gibraltarians to express themselves through referenda regarding possible changes of law. Gibraltar, on the other hand, maintains that the situation is one of decolonization and self-determination, expressing anger over a possible British sell-out of their freedoms.

The most dramatic display of Gibraltarian solidarity against Spanish rule occurred in a November 2002 referendum where 99 percent of Gibraltarians rejected joint-sovereignty. Instead of responding in a conciliatory tone to its dependent colony, Britain described the referendum as “a premature local initiative and an eccentric waste of money,” while Spain deemed the effort illegal. Clearly, miscommunication and debate exist among all three parties in addition to the awkward relationship between a colony and its official governing state.

The largest impediment to a fair and just settlement is, ironically, Gibraltar itself. Despite Spanish and British hopes for reconciliation through trilateral meetings in Brussels, Gibraltar’s Chief Minister, Peter Caruana, has declined all invitations because he feels that Gibraltar would not be treated as a equal partner in the negotiations.

Roman Oyarzun, a spokesman for the Spanish government, recently said that both Spain and Britain shared many “common values” and expressed a commitment to reach an agreement that would give the people of Gibraltar “the highest level of self-government possible.” However, it seems that Gibraltar is unwilling to work with both Spain and Britain. Instead, Gibraltar seems to be using its own unique form of triangular diplomacy in order to pit Britain and Spain against each other. Moreover, the referendum, or in Caruana’s words, the “public consultation,” could be construed as contrary to international law because the UN General Assembly had agreed earlier that the issue was purely an Anglo-Spanish responsibility.

Democratic expression through self-determination is a right for all Gibraltarians, and Anglo-Spanish negotiations must take special heed of this freedom. However, they must also adhere to international law, consider the political deference of a colony toward its colonizer, and recognize official UN decisions and beliefs of territorial integrity.