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The European Commission has reiterated to Spain its expectations over the use of European Arrest Warrants. The Justice commissioner, Věra Jourová, has said this Monday that she trusts member states to use them "in the proper, legal, transparent way". "This is the expectation of all the actors in this concrete case", she added, when asked about the warrants issued by the Spanish judiciary against the pro-independence politicians in exile.

Following the presentation of the 2018 EU Justice scoreboard, in which Spain comes sixth-last in terms of perceived judicial independence, Jourová said that what the Commission "wants to happen in the member states, including Spain, is for there to be an independent judiciary which is stable and impartial [and] free from political interference".

In response to a question from a Spanish journalist as to how she can explain to Spanish citizens "how a politician accused of such a serious crime can find refuge" in other member states, Jourová replied that it is "up to national politicians to explain that to their own citizens".

The commissioner also said that "there is a strong interest in there being sufficient trust so that the decisions of the courts will be recognised in other countries". "We expect the Spanish government and judiciary to withstand the difficult situations so that they can be trusted by others, including by the Commission."