Spain's prime minister and the secession-minded leader of Cataloniahave begun talks amid a bitter dispute over the wealthy north-eastern region's plans for a referendum on independence in November.
The Catalan president, Artur Mas, said the two-and-a-half-hour closed-door session with Mariano Rajoy "wasn't the end of anything, and that in itself is quite positive". There was a willingness on both sides to keep talking, he said.
His press conference was slightly delayed by a man who yelled "Long live Spain!" in Catalan repeatedly until being forced to leave by the police.
With about three months before Catalonia's referendum, the meeting was widely seen as a last-ditch opportunity for the political adversaries to find common ground and ward off a potential crisis between Madrid and Barcelona.
Mas said the pair addressed a wide range of issues, including the region's economy and infrastructure, but failed to reach any kind of consensus on the November plebiscite. Rajoy said in a statement that he had reiterated that the referendum could not take place as it would be illegal under Spain's constitution.
In the absence of any alternative proposal from Rajoy, Mas said he would continue to push for the central government to allow the referendum to be held legally. Polls show that more than 70% of Catalonia's 7.5 million residents would like to hold a referendum.
In recent months there has been growing pressure on Mas and Rajoy to discuss alternatives such as a reform of Spain's 1978 constitution to transfer more powers to the country's 17 regions.
Source : http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/30/spain-catalonia-leaders-talks-referendum
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