With 25 votes for, 293 against and 27 abstentions, the Spanish legislators have rejected an initiative to recognize Kosovo’s independence from Spain.

The initiative was presented to the Spanish Parliament by the party Junts per Catalunya (Together for Catalonia), which is led by Carles Puigdemont, and a few days ago a parliamentary debate was held on it.

In the letter that this party submitted to the Parliament, the decision of the International Court of Justice was mentioned, which in 2010 declared that the declaration of Kosovo’s independence is not contrary to international law.

The fact that Kosovo is recognized by more than 100 countries was also mentioned.

“The Spanish refusal to recognize a state that exercised its legitimate right to self-determination is an obstacle to the European policy of integrating the Western Balkans into the European Union. And this rejection is a destabilizing factor in this area, in a context marked by the war in Ukraine, which this part of Europe experiences with particular anxiety,” the proposal said.

Spain is one of the five countries of the European Union that still does not recognize the independence of Kosovo.

The main reason for the non-recognition of the state of Kosovo by Spain is believed to be related to the Spanish attitude towards the aspirations of its northeastern region, Catalonia, to become independent.

This region has had several unsuccessful attempts to separate from Spain, while official Madrid has strongly opposed this move.