Rajoy cannot govern without talking to Amaiur, Basque nationalists insist

Basque nationalists, including members of the radical abertzale left, on Tuesday cautioned Prime Minister-elect Mariano Rajoy against ostracizing the Amaiur coalition, which won seven seats in Congress.

"The Popular Party [PP] has got to understand that it has to open a path knowing that an ideological sensibility exists in Basque society," said Iñigo Urkulli, Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) president.

On Monday, María Dolores de Cospedal, the PP secretary, said that Rajoy would meet with all parties in Congress, except the abertzale coalition Amaiur, unless it renounced ETA violence. Basque Popular Party (PPE) leader Antonio Basagoiti went further by saying that Rajoy should not talk with any abertzale group that doesn't publicly condemn ETA. The terrorist group last month announced a "definitive" end to violence.

Pernando Barrena and Maribi Ugarteburu, two traditional abertzale leaders, said that it was necessary for the PP to adapt to the new political landscape. "Whoever wants to govern by forgetting that reality is making a big mistake," Barrena said at a news conference in San Sebastián.

Standing with Rajoy in not dealing with Amaiur is Rosa Díez, whose Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD) won five seats.

For his part, Basque Socialist Party (PSE) deputy Eduardo Madina said he believes that Rajoy should meet with Amaiur. "They are completely legal ? the courts say so ? and they represent a sector that Rajoy is going to govern."

After Sunday's vote, Amaiur will be the second-largest nationalist party after Catalan nationalist CiU bloc to be represented in Congress. The radical party had an even better showing than the PNV, which won five seats.

Still, PNV officials are already growing optimistic at possibly recapturing the regional government that was taken away from them during the 2009 elections, when Juan José Ibarretxe lost the regional premiership. At the time, the Socialists formed a partnership government with the Popular Party (PP).

Now, following the Socialists' poor race results, the PNV officials see their goal as more realistic when it comes time for the regional elections, provisionally set for 2013.

Socialist regional premier Patxi López on Tuesday rejected calling early elections because he "still has some support" for his mandate, said government spokeswoman Idoia Mendia.