Catalan Nationalism: Challenges for Spain and for United Europe

Abstract

The Catalan issue, despite the apparent decrease in tension at the present time, has been on the agenda of the internal political life of the Kingdom of Spain for many years. This problem entered an acute phase in 2017, after the holding of an unconstitutional referendum on independence in the region. This move by Catalan nationalists provoked the largest political crisis in the country in the entire post-Fascist period of its existence. The Catalan issue has become one of the main components of a larger domestic political crisis in Spain, manifested in the destabilization of the country's party and political system. The importance of resolving the Catalan issue is due to the fact that the further existence of Spain as a nation-state within the current borders depends on the stabilization of this conflict. The Catalan issue is of particular importance in the light of the upcoming parliamentary elections in the country in 2023.