Today, the President of the Catalan Government, Carles Puigdemont, met with a delegation of Estonian MPs currently visiting Barcelona to obtain a first-hand account of the political situation in Catalonia. This is the fourth visit by a foreign parliamentary delegation organized by the Public Diplomacy Council of Catalonia (Diplocat) and the Catalonia Support Group of the Estonian Parliament.

 

The delegation, led by the chairman of the Catalonia Support Group and member of the Estonian Free Party (EVA), Artur Talvik, includes MEP Indrek Tarand, who was the longest serving Director General of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Liisa Oviir and Ülo Laanoja, MP and former MP, respectively, from the Social Democratic Party MPs and Helmut Hallemaa from the Estonian Centre Party (KESK). Also attending today’s meeting were Andres Ammas (EVA), Mart Helme, from the Conservative People’s Party of Estonia (EKRE) and Tina Kangro (IRL), member of the European Union Committee in the Parliament of Estonia.

 

After the meeting, which took place at the Palau de la Generalitat, Artur Talvik told members of the press that the parliamentary support group was established last year following the mass mobilization of September 11^th 2015. The chairman also affirmed that “as a democrat” he believed a referendum to be “a good solution” and that the “tense situation” between the Spanish and Catalan governments would ease after a vote on the issue of independence. Furthermore, the Member of Parliament found the State’s position “surprising”, citing the “very strong methods” used by the central administration against the Catalan political process, specifically the prosecution of the organisers of the 9N consultation.