No website do Real Instituto Elcano, um "think tank" espanhol, pode ver-se um interessante estudo de William Chislet, intitulado "Portugal and Spain: From Distant Neighbours to Uneasy Associates", sobre as relações entre Portugal e Espanha na actualidade.
Eis as conclusões:
«The degree of integration of the Spanish and Portuguese economies is already high and is bound to increase, particularly in an enlarged EU of 25 countries which will continue to add new members (Bulgaria and Rumania in 2007 and possibly Turkey in 2015). The enlargement has put Spain and Portugal back on the periphery of Europe; the two countries need each other in order to counterbalance the EU?s expansion to the East. The entry of former communist nations with much lower labour costs is eroding one of the previous competitive advantages of the two countries for multinationals, and Spanish and Portuguese companies are also beginning to relocate. Economically, at least, it would make sense for Spanish and Portuguese companies to forge closer links, either through outright mergers or more indirectly through crossed-shareholding agreements. Spain and Portugal are ripe, for example, for a cross-border merger of banks. Politically, however, it is another matter.»
Vale a pena ler o resto.
