Wales (one of the four countries that make up the United Kingdom) sees the Basque Country as a special territory, a friend within Europe. It has been like this for decades. Both economies are largely coal and industrial, with strong union ties and, above all, two strong languages of their own coexisting with the national one. First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford, visited Basque lehendakari this Wednesday, Inigo Urkullu. With this, he wants to encourage projects to harness marine energy, because “the sun may not shine or the wind may not blow, but the tides can always rise and fall,” Labor Party leader EL PERIÓDICO DE ESPAÑA told EL PERIÓDICO DE ESPAÑA. Princea Ibérica group, Call from Victoria. He also met with the executives of two key Spanish companies for Wales: CAF, which started manufacturing trains for the English network there in 2017 and employs 220 people at its Newport base; and Gestamp, the automotive company with 255 employees in the town of Llanelli.
Basque Lehendakari, what did you talk to Íñigo Urkullu about?
We reviewed the 2018 memorandum of understanding between Wales and the Basque Country and what has been achieved. And we’ve set our sights on the next one to see what new topics we can tackle from 2024.
For example?
There is one issue that has always been a part of our relationship and that is the language issue. We are bilingual countries: Spanish and Basque, English and Welsh. We talked about how we can encourage their use in many areas of daily life. These are very important things for the identity of the Basque Country and for Wales.
Are they collaborating on more issues?
Yes, we talked about how we can work together to maximize floating offshore wind power and tidal power – the power of the tides. It is an advantage that both countries bring to the Atlantic Ocean. This energy will be important to do well in our role in protecting our planet from climate change and providing energy security for our populations in the future.
Is there a concrete agreement, a common commitment, or is it more of a political agreement?
This is a very practical deal. A delegation from our companies was in the Basque Country just a few weeks ago. We will be attending a major conference on the subject here early next year. During this visit, we discussed how we can share the development of these new technologies as well as being a common political goal. Marine energy offers us reliable energy. The sun does not always shine and the wind does not always blow. But the tide rises and falls twice a day, as can certainly be predicted.
You have a special relationship with two Spanish companies, CAF (trains) and Gestamp (cars)…
I talked to the executives of those companies. A large part of our economy is based on production. It’s important to us to have a manufacturer like CAF that produces trains for Wales and ultimately the rest of England. Gestamp is an important part of our economy in the automotive industry. We want to secure Wales’ manufacturing future.
CAF is a controversial company in Spain because it is building light rail in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory…
It’s important for me as a Welsh government not to pretend I have a responsibility for something I don’t have. In our system of government, the person responsible for foreign policy matters is from London.
How is Wales after Brexit?
We are very determined to ensure that Brexit does not cause Wales to turn its back on the world and withdraw. After Brexit, we understand that we need to do more to ensure that Wales is perceived as an outward-looking and engaged European country.
They described themselves as the “holy nation”…
Foreigners are welcome. We welcome foreigners whose lives are turned upside down by events in their own country over which they have no control, such as Syria or Afghanistan. In the last 12 months we have 1,000 new people living in Wales from Hong Kong and 6,000 new people coming from Ukraine.
They have a different vision than the central government, which has plans to curb immigration…
We in Wales believe that people who have a legitimate claim to become a refugee or apply for asylum in the UK should be provided with safe and legal ways to do so.
Do you think Brexit can be undone?
I do not believe that Brexit can be reversed in the near future, but that does not mean that we cannot or should not capitalize on what is successful, to strive for better and closer economic relations with our newest and most important market (Europe). Renegotiating the Northern Ireland Protocol to take the first step in addressing aspects of the original Withdrawal Agreement that could be improved to the benefit of Wales…
This sounds like an endless negotiation…
Aspects that have not been satisfactorily resolved can be improved. For example, like many countries outside the European Union, young people can also benefit from the Erasmus+ program (student exchange). We regret that we did not stay in the Interrail program (youth movement). We must ensure that our universities participate in the Horizon (research) program, to which we have contributed very successfully. We must rejoin the Euratom program (European energy community). There are relationship problems that don’t survive and can be fixed. However, this does not mean rejoining the European Union.
Could you briefly introduce your country, Wales, to the Spaniards who do not know?
Wales is a small country of 3 million inhabitants on the west side of the United Kingdom, overlooking the island of Ireland. We have our own language, Welsh, the oldest language spoken in Europe, spoken by hundreds of thousands of people every day. Politically, the Welsh people have always favored leftist parties. I lead a Labor government in the Welsh Parliament and have been in power for nearly 25 years. This means that we pursue policies of a social democratic nature designed to promote social justice for all people in Wales and to create a future based on greater equality, shared opportunities and solidarity of interests among the diverse people living in our small country.