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Iñigo Urkullu does not like the conferences of autonomous presidents. The lehendakari - now in office - of the PNV is more of bilateral meetings that put in value the regional government of the Basque Country than of joint meetings with the rest of the autonomies of the common regime.

The pandemic and the Covid-19, as in so many other things, made an exception also in this and, due to the "seriousness of the situation", the Basque president actively participated in the 14 conferences of regional leaders that were held electronically during the period of confinement. That ended.

The de-escalation and the 'new normality' have not modified the nationalist preference for bilaterality and for forcing the "equal to equal" meeting with the Government of Spain. Urkullu did not attend the last face-to-face meeting that took place in the month of January 2017 under the presidency of Mariano Rajoy and, if there is no last-minute change, neither will he attend the one held on July 31 in La Rioja .

The l ehendakari thus claims bilaterality in his relations with the Government and gives a pulse to Pedro Sánchez at a time that, coincidentally, coincides with the negotiations for the formation of the new autonomous Government with the Basque socialists. The negotiations between the PNV and the PSE enter this week in a phase in which both parties will step on the accelerator as they begin to run and the deadlines for the constitution of the Basque Parliament.

The Basque 'concert'

The background noise produced by the pulse between Urkullu and Sánchez can be an element of distortion. In fact, the announced absence of Urkullu at the La Rioja conference has already been the first friction between both partners and the leader of the PSE, Idoia Mendia , has urged the Lehendakari to rectify.

The reason given this time by Urkullu for not attending the forum of autonomous presidents is that the Mixed Concert Commission has not met on the scheduled date, earlier this month.

This commission is precisely one of the forums that highlights the bilateral relationship between the two Administrations, because it seats representatives of the Basque and central governments. What is pending is an important meeting, because the level of indebtedness allowed to the Basque Country will have to come out of it to compensate for the drop in collection this year, which can be around 3,000 million euros.

Therefore, it depends on how the 2021 accounts are balanced, with an economy already in recession. Hence the nationalist anger with Sánchez, who is accused of failing to fulfill his commitments.

Unrest among Basque socialists

But linking the lack of convocation for this meeting with the absence of a conference of presidents in which the distribution of 140,000 million euros of European funds is going to be debated has caused unease among the Basque socialists, their future government partners, and also with Podemos. Idoia Mendia has not hesitated to consider it "an empty gesture" and has asked the Lehendakari "not to turn away from the dialogue."

The PNV is known to be necessary for the PSOE Government and Unidas Podemos to carry out the General State Budgets, and therefore feels strong to tighten the rope. And they say it very clearly: either there is a meeting of the Mixed Commission or no conference of presidents, "not to mention Budgets."

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Know more

  • Inigo Urkullu
  • Pedro Sánchez
  • Basque Country
  • Coronavirus
  • PNV
  • PSOE
  • PSE

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