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T-V in reply to @uber_gruber
EU membership: there's not really much reason for a state, that's democratically seceded and already complies to EU law, from being excluded, is there?Orly?
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso expressed the view early this year that Scotland would be automatically excluded on becoming independent and would find readmission to the 28-member bloc "extremely difficult, if not impossible".Source: uk.reuters.com/article/2014/09/14/uk-scotland-independence-eu-insight-idUKKBN0H90DT20140914
Scotland will have to apply for membership, which requires unanimity. Do you think Spain, Belgium or Italy will give a second thought to saying no? In addition, new applicants now have to join the Euro as a condition of membership. Will Scotland do that?
Really? This was addressed in February-Baroso (as a Spaniard) was making his comments on a personal capacity, but don't let that get in the way of the lazy sensationalism. http://www.newsnetscotland.com/index.php/scottish-news/8752-barroso-backtracks-on-kosovo-comments-as-pressure-builds-on-ec-president
or from the Scotsman:But Mr Currie said: “I think he was unwise to express the opinion he expressed in terms of the virtual impossibility of Scotland becoming a member state of the EU.
“I think that was extremely unwise.
“I don’t think he was correct and I don’t necessarily think that opinion is shared either among all the member states or even necessarily within the Commission.”
Mr Currie said it was unclear whether Mr Barroso was speaking on behalf of the Commission or as an “outgoing President” of the Commission.
Mr Barroso compared Scotland’s situation with Kosovo, but Mr Currie said a more appropriate parallel would be German unification where the political situation required a degree of pragmatism. In the event, East Germany was incorporated into the EU in a matter of months “Kosovo was an unfortunate example,” he said.
“Scotland already has been applying the highest principles of democracy and human rights.”
He added: “We would be talking about a territory which is currently part of a full member state. We’re dealing with people who would have certain rights as EU citizens and which would be very difficult to take away, and nobody would want to.
“The bottom line for me is that it would be dealt with in a pragmatic way, and it would involve inevitable negotiations which would be rather tough.”
Apart from that, Scotland also has 60% of the EU's natural resources, and at a time when Russia is going psychotic on its neighbours, do you think that fears over Catalan seperatism will outweigh having a stable oil producing nation in the heart of the EU?
http://news.sky.com/story/1250880/scotland-is-lynchpin-of-eu-energy-security
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do you think that fears over Catalan seperatism will outweigh having a stable oil producing nation in the heart of the EU?
Yes. The energy security argument is nonsense. Scotland will want to sell their oil to whoever wants to buy it. Do you think Salmond will sulk and take his ball home if he isn't granted access to the EU?
In addition, José-Manuel García-Margallo hardly welcomed Scottish entry with open arms did he? I would be fairly worried reading his comment that the intention is to exercise a veto over Scottish entry. Lastly, Barroso back-tracked because it wasn't appropriate for him to make such comments given his position, not because the core of his argument (that Spain would oppose Scottish entry) is wrong.
Shout down other arguments or view points by all means, but there is a massive degree of uncertainty over the EU and currency and to simply ignore that is dangerous. I suspect that the UK and other EU states won't be particularly generous in bending the rules and doing Scotland favours.
I doubt I will change your view though and I'm unlikely to change my own, so I'm going to call it a day.
Orly?
Source: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/09/14/uk-scotland-independence-eu-insight-idUKKBN0H90DT20140914
Scotland will have to apply for membership, which requires unanimity. Do you think Spain, Belgium or Italy will give a second thought to saying no? In addition, new applicants now have to join the Euro as a condition of membership. Will Scotland do that?