The Government of Gibraltar has approved a draft text intended to shape the territory’s future relationship with the European Union following Brexit, a step that advances a long-running process but stops short of a formally signed or ratified treaty.
According to a statement released by the Gibraltarian executive, the text was approved after six meetings held over the past two weeks. The document will now undergo a legal review, provided that no changes are introduced that alter its substantive meaning. Once this process is completed, the text will be presented to the Gibraltar Parliament through a motion open to amendments, ahead of a parliamentary debate.
Only then will the United Kingdom trigger its own internal ratification procedures. All of this follows the completion in December of the final legal drafting by negotiators from the European Union, the United Kingdom and Spain, based on the agreement reached last 11 June.
Despite repeated references by officials to an “agreement,” no treaty has yet been formally signed nor have the full legal details or operational implications of the draft been made public. As a result, several aspects of the future framework remain unclear, including how responsibilities would be shared among the parties and how the agreement would be implemented in practice.
The proposed framework is intended to regulate Gibraltar’s relations with Spain in the post-Brexit context, particularly with regard to the movement of people and goods across the border. One of the most visible consequences would be the removal of the physical fence separating Gibraltar from Spain, a long-standing symbol of the dispute surrounding the territory.
Supporters of the draft describe it as a pragmatic solution aimed at facilitating cross-border mobility and economic stability. However, the absence of a signed treaty and the limited public disclosure of the text have raised questions about the scope of the commitments involved and the balance of interests reflected in the arrangement.
From Spain’s perspective, the process has attracted attention for what it does not include as much as for what it does. While Madrid has participated in the negotiations, there has been little public discussion of how Spanish sovereign interests would be safeguarded under the new framework, or of what leverage Spain retains once the agreement is implemented.
The European Union, for its part, has framed the draft as a technical solution designed to avoid disruption at one of Europe’s most sensitive border crossings. Yet critics note that the EU appears to be moving towards normalising its relationship with a non-EU territory without clearly articulating the strategic rationale behind the arrangement.
The Strait of Gibraltar remains a critical route for global trade, maritime security, and migration flows. Against this backdrop, the lack of transparency surrounding the draft agreement has fuelled broader questions about the EU’s capacity to manage strategically significant areas through coherent and clearly defined policies.
For now, the process remains incomplete. Until the legal review is concluded, parliamentary debates take place and a treaty is formally signed and ratified, Gibraltar’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU will continue to rest on a framework that is politically endorsed but legally unfinished.
