UNITED NATIONS, October 27. /TASS/. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres calls on the Spanish authorities and the Catalan government to seek solutions to the current crisis within the framework of the Spanish constitution, UN Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters on Friday.
"We are trying to follow up on the developments. For now the Secretary General encourages all concerned to seek solutions within the framework of the Spanish constitution and through established political and legal channels," he said.
Catalonia crisis
Earlier on Friday, the Catalan parliament passed a resolution declaring a republic independent of Spain. Rounds of applause broke out in the chamber after the results of the vote had been announced.
Meanwhile, the Spanish government plans to file an appeal with the Constitutional Court against Catalonia’s declaration of independence, the Europa Press news agency reported.
On October 1, Catalonia held a referendum on seceding from Spain. A total of 90.18% of the voters, or more than two million people, said "yes" to Catalonia’s independence. Madrid said the referendum was illegal and refused to recognize its results.
The Catalan authorities insist that the plebiscite was held legitimately, while they only delayed the declaration of independence for a few weeks in order to make one last attempt to build dialogue with Madrid.