'Spanish sovereignty not negotiable,' Rajoy tells Supreme Court
In his testimony, Spain's president during the 2017 independence bid says “there was never anything to discuss" regarding the referendum
"I negotiate neither the compliance with the law, the Spanish constitution, nor Spain's sovereignty," former Spanish president, Mariano Rajoy, told Spain's Supreme Court on Wednesday, where he testified in the trial of the Catalan independence leaders.
Rajoy was head of the Spanish government during the 2017 constitutional crisis, and it was his cabinet that enforced direct rule in Catalonia hours after the Catalan Parliament declared independence on October 27, 2017.
"I’ve always been willing to establish dialogue," said Rajoy, adding: "I met six times with Artur Mas while we were presidents, as well as with Puigdemont." Yet, the former president insisted that regarding the independence referendum “there was never anything to discuss."
"Spain is what Spaniards decide, and not what some Spaniards decide," said Rajoy, adding that "I made clear I would not authorize an independence referendum [in all meetings with Catalan officials]."