International action is one of the main reasons the Council exists. In order to implement fully the will of the citizens as expressed in the 1-O referendum, it will be necessary, among other things, to secure the international recognition of Catalonia as an independent Republic. International action to secure that recognition must be a political priority of any strategy that aims to bring to fruition Catalonia’s drive for independence and the Council must lead this international action.

The strategy for the international recognition of Catalonia requires a permanent conversation with a wide range of players on the European and international stage (parties, governments, parliaments etc). It also requires the consolidation of alliances and support that the Catalan independence movement currently enjoys and the creation of new alliances within the European Union and internationally. It requires, moreover, contacts with diplomatic representatives and other international observers interested in the Catalan independence process.

Catalonia bases its independence process on the demand for its right to self-determination. Similarly, Catalonia isn’t alone at this current time in making its demand for the right to self-determination the central axis of its political activity: many other countries around the world, some in Europe, are now immersed in their own movements for national emancipation. From Catalonia it is vital to encourage alliances with these other peoples and to build an international movement for self-determination.

The right of the self-determination of peoples is an evolving right, that has gone through diverse stages since it appeared on the scene at the beginning of the 20th century and is today the object of intense debate, both in the academic world and the world of international institutions. Catalonia can play a leadership role in advancing this right beyond the limitations imposed in the second half of the 20th century. To this end the Council will work on the following initiatives:

An international consultative paper with a case-study of Catalonia as subject to the right to self-determination.
Collaboration with centres researching the right of self-determination throughout the world.
A presence in international fora and international debates related to the right to self-determination.
A role as observer in current processes of self-determination throughout the world.
Alliance building with democratic and non-violent movements that demand the right to self-determination.
The creation, based on the example of Catalonia, of an international framework of reference related to the right of self-determination that can also be useful to other nations in similar situations.

Beyond the strategy for the international recognition of the Catalan Republic, knowledge and recognition of Catalonia in the international sphere has changed radically since the 1-O referendum and as a result of the Declaration of Independence of 27-O. Catalonia is starting to become, as a consequence, a de facto political subject within the international community, alongside the de jure political subjects (the states) it comprises.
It is thus essential for Catalonia, as a political subject, to have its own voice on the international stage. To this end, the Council, from its position as the legitimate representative of the Catalan nation and its desire for independence before the international community, will seek to participate and be an active presence in all those international fora, developments and initiatives that are pertinent to Catalonia or where Catalonia can present its own proposals and perspectives on the great challenges faced by society internationally (climate change, inequality and poverty, the protection of human rights, financial and economic stability, the regulation of international trade, the protection of linguistic and cultural diversity, etc.)

In order to implement the strategies and initiatives described in the previous projects (13, 14 & 15), the Council must expand its own network of foreign delegations, that will allow it to consolidate stable relationships with the institutions and civil societies of those states that are particularly strategic in relation to its own objectives. This diplomatic network – part public, part civil diplomacy – will allow it to carry forward with the necessary resources the whole task of internationalisation and political lobbying of the states and institutions of the European Union and the rest of the international community. This network will complement the Generalitat’s network of international Delegations and, at a time when the State has undertaken an aggressive legal strategy in order to stop or reverse the creation of these Delegations, the Council’s diplomatic network will make effective the principle according to which “the Council will reach where the Government of the Generalitat cannot.”

In order to guide and define its strategies of this diplomatic network of its own, the Council will create an advisory body (Council for Civil Diplomacy).

The citizens of Catalonia committed to self-determination, the Republic and the 1-O mandate are key players in the task of internationalisation that the Council is leading. States that have an intelligent diplomatic strategy well into the 21st century don’t simply implement it through embassies and consulates, but also through the means of the organisations of civil society, enterprises and, increasingly, through citizens themselves. From the very first moment the independence movement has found its main driving force in citizen organisations at home and abroad. An outstanding example is the activity of the ANC’s Assemblies abroad.
As a result, the Council will design a strategy for international action the protagonists and drivers of which will be citizens themselves. This strategy will target not only institutions, but also the citizens of the countries of the EU and the rest of the international community: it is all about articulating international activity “from (Catalan) citizen to (foreign) citizen.” Some examples of activity in this respect are: the European Citizens’ Initiative before European institutions (one million signatures in a minimum of seven EU countries) with the ANC, “10,000 ambassadors campaign”, support for the activities of the Foreign Friends of Catalonia, etc.