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Prime Minister delivers a speech amidst ongoing Catalan crisis​

Earlier today, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez delivered a televised address condemning the armed separatist uprising in Catalonia. Speaking from the Moncloa Palace in Madrid, the prime minister outlined a series of immediate countermeasures, including the deployment of national security forces, suspension of funding to collaborating municipalities, and legal prosecution of those involved in the rebellion.

“Compatriotas,​

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Today I speak to you not just as Prime Minister of Spain, but as a citizen, a father, and a defender of the rule of law. What we are witnessing in Catalonia is not a protest. It is not a referendum. It is not a civil disagreement.​

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It is a military-backed insurrection orchestrated by a group that calls itself the Free Catalan Assembly and led by former officer Júlia Riera who is a person who has chosen to place herself above the Constitution, above democratic institutions, and above the will of the Spanish people.​

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Let us make no mistake, this is not about Catalonia’s identity. It is about power seized by force. And it will not stand. Spain is a democracy and no democracy can allow armed groups to dictate national borders, intimidate institutions, and coerce public servants at the barrel of a gun. I acknowledge that Commander Riera speaks with conviction. That she speaks to wounds that are real. But conviction alone does not grant legitimacy.​

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It is not courage to silence elected officials. It is not justice to dismantle democratic institutions. And it is not liberation to threaten mayors, judges, or journalists who do not fall in line. She has chosen a path of defiance, not just against Madrid, but against the rule of law itself. And I say this calmly, but with resolve, Spain will not negotiate with those who attempt to split our nation by military means. Spain will not allow violence to replace votes and Spain will not yield to chaos disguised as change.​

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Effective immediately, the government has authorized the deployment of security forces to secure critical infrastructure in Catalonia and a full legal mandate will be drawn up by the Minister of Justice to prosecute all actors involved in the armed takeover of regional institutions.​

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Let me be clear, this is not an attack on Catalonia. This is a defense of all Spaniards, including the millions of Catalans who reject extremism and want their voices heard through peace and not pressure. To the People of Catalonia, I speak to you directly.​

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Your language, your culture, your pride, it is part of Spain’s soul. But no identity, no matter how deeply felt, can excuse the abandonment of law. I ask you not for silence, but for clarity. Do not let your future be written by those who would hijack your hopes for their own ambitions.​

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Return to the democratic path, raise your voices, but do it in the plazas, not behind barricades. In parliaments, not through proclamations made at gunpoint. Spain is a patient country. But it is also a strong one, we will not be provoked into overreach, but neither will we tolerate sedition dressed in poetry. The people may rise but it will not fly above the Constitution, this is our home and we will defend it, calmly, firmly, lawfully.​

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Viva la democracia. Viva la convivencia. Viva España."​