flanders

Catalonia and Flanders cancel joint trip to Morocco due to Spanish pressure

April 29, 2017 11:21 AM | ACN

The Catalan and Flemish governments have decided to suspend a joint commercial mission to Morocco they were due to start on May 7. The trip, which was to be led by Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, and Flemish Minister-President, Geert Bourgeois, was cancelled after the Moroccan government “unilaterally” decided that no political leader from the country would meet with the two presidents. Sources from the Catalan Government said to the CNA that Spanish diplomats urged Rabat to avoid political meetings with the Catalan government during the trip. Pugidemont and Bourgeois regretted the decision in a joint press release, warning that it will negatively affect “more than 30 Catalan and Flemish companies” that aimed to improve their commercial relationship with Morocco.

Girona turns into Catalan Capital of spring as 60th edition of 'Temps de Flors' flower festival kicks off

May 11, 2015 11:00 PM | ACN / Valentina Marconi

The 60th edition of the 'Girona, Temps de Flors' flower festival kicked off on Saturday and will run until the 17th of May. For the event, around 1,000 students, volunteers, designers and florists have come together, working on 164 flower installations, distributed over 134 spaces all around the city. The festival is expected to attract more than 200,000 visitors, providing the city with a true international dimension. Two official itineraries have been set up, allowing tourists to walk around discovering many of Girona's magical corners. According to event organisers, the top 10 sites not to be missed are: the Funeral Chapel of Sant Nicolau, the Basilica of Sant Feliu, Jurats Square, the Arab Baths, the Girona's iconic Cathedral, the Church of Sant Lluc, the building of Sarraïnes, Rabbin House Lleó Avinay, Els Alemanys Gardens and the Church of Sant Martí. This year, the Festival's budget amounted to €400,000.

French study backs EU membership of independent Catalonia and Scotland

January 9, 2014 07:31 PM | ACN

The former Chief of Staff of the French Minister for European Affairs and current member of the Conseil d’État, Yves Gounin, argues that the independence of Catalonia, Scotland or Flanders would not cause their immediate expulsion from the European Union but neither would it result in their automatic inclusion. Gounin states that a political negotiation should be undertaken; it would be “the most realistic” approach, he says. Therefore, according to this study published in the journal Politique Étrangère, independence and EU membership should be negotiated at the same time and therefore the implementation of EU Treaties would not be interrupted at any moment. Gounin underlines that there are legal and political arguments to defend that an independent Catalonia or Scotland would not be expelled from the EU. It is in “everybody’s” interest, he highlighted.