Secret meetings bring PP and PNV closer on ETA

The leader of the Popular Party (PP), Mariano Rajoy, has met secretly with the head of the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) six times since December 2010. The meetings, which took place in Madrid, focused on the possibility of a future without ETA terrorism and served to close the gap between the mainstream Basque nationalists and the pro-Spain conservatives after years of strained relations.

PNV president Iñigo Urkullu began meeting with Rajoy when it became apparent that the PP could well win the next general elections, scheduled for November 20 of this year.

For his part, Rajoy wants to establish a stable relationship with a party that he considers key toward an eventual end of ETA, and which he admires for its decision to "reject any political compensation for ending terrorism."

A long-running dispute in Spain involves whether the government should enter into talks with ETA before the group disbands completely, and whether any compensation should be offered for this extinction, such as transferring ETA convicts to prisons closer to home.

Last week, the Socialist premier of the Basque region, Patxi López, suggested that if ETA disbanded there could be a prisoner transfer, although he denied this was an offer of compensation.

Under the previous PP administration, tension between the government and Basque nationalists reached a peak. Rajoy now seeks to turn the page, helped by the fact that the PNV's new leadership has also adopted a tougher public stance against ETA.