Spain welcomes IRA arms move

Spanish politicians tonight greeted the IRA’s announcement that it was laying down arms and expressed hope that the move would encourage the armed Basque group Eta to do likewise.

The Socialist government, however, warned that the there was no comparison between the two conflicts.

Josu Ekoreka, a spokesman for the Basque Nationalist Party, a leading group in the northern Basque region and a rival to Eta, called the news “magnificent.”

“It strengthens the effort that we in Spain are making to persuade Eta that the way of talks is possible and can have a positive end,” he said.

ETA, whose name stands for Basque Homeland and Freedom in the Basque Language, has killed more than 800 people in bombings and shootings since 1968 in a campaign for an independent Basque state. But it has not killed anyone since 2003 and there has been speculation in recent months that it might call a cease-fire.

The Spanish government of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, backed by Parliament, has said it is open to talks if the group stops killing.

Eta has repeatedly said it is open to talks but only if Basques’ right to self-determination is recognised.

But while the Socialist government described the IRA move as “great news” it warned against making any parallels with Spain.

“Each country has its own problems, its own logic and its own ways,” said Interior Minister Jose Antonio Alonso. “Britain is Britain and Spain is Spain and they are not comparable situations”

Outside the government, politicians were more willing to draw links.

“Now it’s to be hoped for that those who should take note of this news do so,” said ruling Socialist party spokesman Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba. “It shows that in a democracy it’s not possible to achieve any political objective through violence.”

The leader of the Republican Left of Catalonia party, Joan Puigcercos, said he hoped the “news makes Eta, its supporters, political parties and the government think … We too have within our reach a definitive end to violence in the Basque region.”

Spanish authorities believe the group, while not finished, has been badly hit by arrests and arms and document seizures in France and Spain in recent years.