Today, the President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, affirmed that this year “could be, if the people of Catalonia decide, a testament to the conception of a new State in Europe” and, if this occurs, this new State “will be a trusted member, willing to fully and immediately assume from the first moment all of its international obligations”, he added.

 

The Head of the Executive expressed these words during the institutional declaration on the occasion of United Nations’ 70^th anniversary, which took place at midday in Barcelona’s Sant Pau Art Nouveau Site. The event was attended by a representation of the Consular Corps in Barcelona, led by its dean and British Consul General Andrew Gwatkin, as well as the heads of various organisations associated with the United Nations and with head offices in the Catalan capital such as the director of the United Nations University – Barcelona, Parvati Nair.    

  

During his speech, Artur Mas emphasized, as he had done during his conference at Columbia University, that Catalonia’s objective “in no other than to unite its efforts with the rest of the world’s free nations to take on today’s challenges and together shape our shared future”.

 

In this respect, the President highlighted Catalonia’s commitment to multilateralism and “our pledge to a peaceful and just world”, which is derived “from our secular history, our principles and our aspirations”. For this reason, Mas noted that “Catalonia has always been called upon to be a pillar of stability, not only stability in finance, creativity and economic growth across the Iberian Peninsula and Southern Europe, but also a pillar of stability in terms of security, social and intercultural harmony throughout the Mediterranean west”.      

       

With regards to Catalonia’s aforementioned aspirations, the head of the Catalan Government made a special reference to the words of President Francesc Macià who in 1932 said “To all the nations of the world, we say unto them that we also desire to be at your side, in the conquest by all these ideals of liberty justice and, above all, peace”. In this respect, Artur Mas asserted that “Catalonia wants and it is prepared to do so”.

 

“There is no doubt that the referential framework used for our foreign action is the one used by the European Union”, affirmed Mas during his speech as he alluded to Catalonia’s commitment to Europe and multilateralism. And as he reminded those attending the event that Catalonia has been a part of Europe since 1986, the President explained that the country “must continue to be part of it, in whatever future the Catalan people decide on September 27”.  “I am convinced that this is the inclination of the absolute majority of the Catalan society”, he concluded.

 

President Mas also made a special reference to the current migration tragedy occurring in Europe and the Mediterranean, which “illustrates with cruel precision the deficiency in the partial approaches as well as the urgency of a joint, integrated and multi-level response to develop a resolution of the shared challenges” of the global context.

 

The day’s event closed with a viewing of the ‘Hymn of the United Nations’, which was written and performed by Pau Casals at the United Nations in 1971, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the organisation.