Spain: Catalonia's Independence Bid, One Year Later

Economic and political problems are undermining Catalonia's most recent bid for independence. The region's president, Artur Mas, has struggled to reconcile the demands of his parliamentary partners, who want to secede quickly, with those of his party, some elements of which view the independence process more reservedly. In the coming months, the Catalan government will try to buy time to negotiate a political settlement with Madrid, wait for the economy to improve and delay the referendum for as long as possible. For its part, Madrid will be willing to negotiate because it wants to ease political tensions within its borders and focus on what will alleviate the economic crisis.