Canada recognizes only one Spain

By Barry Ellsworth

TRENTON, Canada

Canada recognizes one Spain, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday.

The prime minister was reacting to reporters’ questions on the Catalan regional parliament voting to form a new country.

Trudeau made the remarks in Quebec, where he attended the funeral of a former senator.

“Canada recognizes one united Spain,” he said. “We understand there are significant internal discussions that they are going through right now and we simply call for those discussions to be done according to the rule of law, according to the Spanish constitution, according to the principles of international law.”

Catalonia overwhelmingly voted Friday to declare independence from Spain, and the Spanish government said such a move is illegal. Following news of the vote, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy dismissed Catalonia’s president and cabinet, dissolved its parliament and called for new elections in a bid to stop the independence movement.

Trudeau said he hoped matters could be settled “in a peaceful, non-violent way.”