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Rock isle row flares again
MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- The simmering row between Spain and Morocco over tiny Perejil Island in the Mediterranean has erupted for the second time in two months. Bi-lateral talks planned for Monday in Madrid have been abruptly cancelled amid a new round of bickering between the two nations. Morocco accused Spain of landing a military helicopter on the island, just off Morocco's northern coast, at the weekend -- a charge denied to CNN by a Spanish Defence Ministry spokesman. He said the helicopter was checking on the intentions of a small vessel from a Moroccan frigate in the area. Moroccan Foreign Minister Mohamed Benaissa cancelled his talks with his Spanish counterpart Ana Palacio and issued a communiqué blasting the Spanish helicopter landing.
Before the news of the Moroccan cancellation, Palacio had described the planned meeting as "an effort to restore a relationship of confidence and progress between the two countries." The uninhabited island was briefly occupied by Moroccan troops in July, who were then displaced by Spanish troops. It has been demilitarised since July 20 under a U.S.-brokered deal that urged both sides to use diplomacy to resolve their differences over the island and numerous other issues. (Story) Monday's talks would have been the first substantive discussions since the military dispute. The two sides dispute not only Perejil island, but a range of issues including the Spanish enclave cities of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa, which are surrounded by Morocco and which Morocco claims. Perejil lies about 200 yards off Morocco's northern coast in the Mediterranean near the Strait of Gibraltar and is used mainly to graze goats. (Factfile)
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