{"id":1713,"date":"2026-07-15T05:37:02","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T05:37:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=1713"},"modified":"2026-07-15T05:37:02","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T05:37:02","slug":"gibraltar-ushers-in-a-new-era-as-british-territorys-border-fence-with-spain-is-removed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=1713","title":{"rendered":"Gibraltar ushers in a new era as British territory\u2019s border fence with Spain is removed"},"content":{"rendered":"
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MADRID (AP) \u2014 Thousands of people who travel every day between the southern tip of Spain<\/span> and the British territory of Gibraltar<\/span> will no longer have to cross a physical border, beginning on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

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The official opening at midnight on Tuesday \u2014 after a border fence was fully removed \u2014 allows a new freedom of movement under a historic treaty between the European Union and the United Kingdom. It came after years of post-Brexit wrangling. <\/p>\n

The contested British Overseas Territory of 38,000 people is perched at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, in a strategic location mere miles from Morocco where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Mediterranean Sea.<\/p>\n

Soon after midnight, crowds crossed freely between Spain\u2019s La L\u00ednea de Concepci\u00f3n and Gibraltar in both directions. Many wore Spanish soccer jerseys after Spain\u2019s victory against France in the World Cup semifinal<\/span> on Tuesday, adding to the celebratory mood.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you feel here is the brotherhood between the two people,\u201d Gibraltar\u2019s Chief Minister Fabian Picardo told Spanish broadcaster RTVE.<\/p>\n

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A deal that took years to realize<\/h2>\n

When Britain left the EU in 2020, the relationship between Gibraltar and the bloc had been left unresolved. <\/p>\n

Previous talks on a deal to ensure people and goods could keep flowing across the border had made halting progress. In 2025, the EU and U.K. announced an agreement<\/span> on those issues, with the two sides and Gibraltar\u2019s government signing a treaty Tuesday that eases border crossings. <\/p>\n

The U.K.\u2019s Foreign Office Minister Stephen Doughty said Tuesday that the agreement secured Gibraltar\u2019s long-term economic future and interests. <\/p>\n

Maro\u0161 \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d, the EU\u2019s trade representative, praised the agreement, too.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt has taken four years of patient, complex negotiation, but the outcome speaks for itself,\u201d \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d said. \u201cIt is a very special feeling to see a fence come down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Without a deal, Gibraltar could have a faced a hard land border with full passport checks, posing economic risks for the territory deeply dependent on some 15,000 Spaniards \u2014 almost half of Gibraltar\u2019s workforce \u2014 who cross the frontier every day for work. <\/p>\n

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Leisure visits by people crossing both sides of the border would have been affected, too.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPeople who are visiting family in Spain, or whose Spanish family is visiting them in Gibraltar. Children who are going to football matches and extracurricular activities, either in Spain or in Gibraltar. They will be able to do that without having to worry about frontier queues,\u201d Picardo told The Associated Press in an interview.<\/p>\n

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