Subject: On alleged Spanish pressure on Vice President Timmermans for his speech on 4/10/2017
On Tuesday 22 June 2021, Spanish newspaper La Razón published an article stating that the European Commission is considering again “the offer of mediation” between Catalonia and Spain, “as happened with the illegal referendum of 1 October 2017″.
The same article states that the debate on Catalonia in the European Parliament’s plenary on Wednesday 4 October 2017! would see President Juncker’s speech with “the hand extended to mediation between Spain and Catalonia”. Eventually President Juncker had to be in India, and the text was read by Vice President Frans Timmermans.
“Jorge Toledo, Spanish Secretary of State for EU Relations, urgentiy travelled to Brussels”, continues the article, in order to “convince Timmermans not to read the speech”. together with a prominent Spanish EPP MEP.
1) Did Mr Timmermans or someone of his team meet or communicate with Mr Toledo in the days before Mr Timmermans’ speech of 4 October 2017 in the EP plenary?
2) Was there a previous draft of Mr Timmermans’ speech, before the one he gave on 4 October 2017, and, ifso, will the Commission make it public.
3) Does the Commission deny or confirm the information stating that the Commission was willing to offer mediation in October 2017 and that the Spanish Government interfered?
