EU sits on its hands as Spain teeters

Wasn’t the whole point of the EU to prevent nationalism and authoritarianism? It was founded in the post-war years to create a more unified, democratic Europe, one that would be so rich and stable that extremism would wither away. And yet Catalonia’s parliament has declared independence and Spain is on the brink of civil unrest. Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, has said Brussels will only deal with Madrid. The EU is like a fire extinguisher that won’t go off.

The Spanish crisis is a conflict of nationalisms. Catalonia’s separatists want to create their own country; Madrid argues that if they secede, the larger nation of Spain will fall apart. Madrid also insists that the referendum held on October 1 was invalid, attracted the support of fewer than half of the voters and thus cannot be said to count – that it would make more sense to hold legal elections. This argument might have won more sympathy were it not for Madrid’s overreaction to the plebiscite. Violent scenes of alleged police brutality, reminiscent of the bad old days of Franco, handed the separatists a moral authority they would otherwise not have had.

Where is the EU in all of this? Its leaders like to think of themselves as the voice of European civilisation, democratic and open to national self-determination. But, as Jean-claude Juncker recently admitted, a Europe of regions would be much harder to govern – so it quietly backs the larger of the two parties, Spain. But the demand for greater regional autonomy is also heard in Italy. The rise of anti-corruption populism has been spotted in the Czech elections, won by a billionaire outsider. The backlash against mass migration was felt in the triumph of the Right-wing in Austria. And Brexit, too, can be explained as a verdict on the EU’S failed policies.

Closer integration hasn’t killed the timeless and universal desire for sovereignty. On the contrary, in a grim irony, many regional nationalists actually favour membership of the EU because they believe its single currency will give them a soft landing upon independence. Mr Tusk’s words are a rude awakening: Brussels is not interested in what it regards as Spain’s internal crisis. Britain and America won’t back Catalonia either. Both sides need to choose the ballot box over violence, to step back from catastrophe. We accept letters by post, fax and email only. Please include name, address, work and home telephone numbers.

111 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1W 0DT

FAX

020 7931 2878

EMAIL dtletters@ telegraph.co.uk

FOLLOW Telegraph Letters on Twitter @Lettersdesk