- The head of the Catalan Executive ended his visit to Belfast with a meeting with the First Minister of Northern Ireland, Michelle O'Neill
The President of the Government of Catalonia, Pere Aragonès i Garcia, met in Northern Ireland with First Minister Michelle O'Neill as part of his institutional visit to Belfast to "strengthen relations with Northern Ireland" and "exchange thoughts not only on the political situation, but also on the way of governing"and "prioritising agreements with social agents".
Speaking to the media after the meeting, President Aragonès emphasised that "in Ireland there was an agreement to be able to hold a referendum if certain conditions were met", and added "that is what we are looking for in Catalonia". Likewise, Aragonès announced that over the next four years his first objective "is that an agreement can be reached between all the parties", "that we set the conditions under which we consider that a referendum should be able to be held, is legitimate and the result of which we would accept".
In this regard, the President said that "Northern Ireland has begun a new era for change, a new era of government, to deliver policies that are good for the people". "If it has been possible to do this in Northern Ireland, with everything the country has gone through, it must also be possible to do it in Catalonia to resolve the conflict between Catalonia and Spain," the President pointed out.
Aragonès concluded by saying that it is necessary to put "the democratic solution first", adding that this must be done "through demands and through negotiation". He stated his belief that "this is the best solution there can be in any political conflict, including the political conflict between Catalonia and Spain".