Spain's opposition withdraws support for Eta talks

MADRID - Spain's opposition party has withdrawn its support for the Socialist government's plans to start peace talks with Basque guerrillas Eta, another hurdle in a process to end 38 years of separatist violence.

The conservative Popular Party (PP) threatened to break its backing for Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero last week when the Basque Socialists said they would open talks with Batasuna, a party banned for its links to Eta.

"The PP cannot stand silent while things like this are happening and so breaks all relations with the government," opposition leader Mariano Rajoy told parliament.

"We pull the support we had offered and will do all we can to stop what we consider to be a massive attack on ... the state of law and the security of Spaniards," he added.

Zapatero had hoped to win the widest possible backing for peace talks with Eta, which he plans to present to parliament later this month.

He still has the backing of other smaller parties so is likely to win any vote on the peace plan.

Eta, which has killed about 850 people in its campaign for an independent Basque state in northern Spain and south-west France, declared a permanent ceasefire in March, raising hopes that almost four decades of violence were coming to an end.

However, various groups have threatened the peace process even before a roadmap has been planned out.

Last week, Batasuna warned that any decision to imprison its leaders for breaking the ban on their party would endanger the truce and talks. A judge decided not to jail them, prompting the PP to accuse the government of bending to Batasuna's demands.

Zapatero has said peace talks can only begin when there is proof Eta has called an end to all forms of violence - from attacks to street violence to extortion. He reiterated on Tuesday that the conditions were being met.

The PP has said Eta should disband before talks begin but the proposal was voted down in parliament.

Politicians and analysts expect the peace process to be split in two - one set of talks between the government and Eta on issues like disarmament and prisoners and the other between a range of political parties on the future of the Basque Country.

The Socialists have said all parties involved in the Basque issue should have a say, including Batasuna which says it has support of up to 15 per cent of people in the region.

- REUTERS