Spain vows to keep pushing for Catalan, Galician and Basque as EU official languages

In a social-media video, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares alternated between Catalan, Galician, Basque and Spanish, declaring that his ministry will work tirelessly to secure official EU status for the three regional tongues. Spain has re-submitted its request at the European Council, a move that needs the consent of all 27 member states and has so far met resistance from Germany, Sweden and Lithuania. Albares suggested that Spain might condition its backing for any additional EU languages on the acceptance of Catalan, Galician and Basque.

Sweden’s acting minister of European Affairs, Jessica Rosencrantz, responded that a serious procedural assessment is required. The Spanish government remains confident that most EU members understand the cultural significance of the demand, and it hopes to make progress after introducing an Any Other Business item at the recent Council meeting in Brussels.