Catalan ex-leader Carles Puigdemont to speak in Brussels as asylum rumors grow

In this file photo dated Thursday October 26, 2017, Catalan President Carles Puigdemont makes a statement at the Palau Generalitat in Barcelona, Spain (AP)

European officials say Catalonia’s ousted regional president will give a news conference in Brussels as speculation mounts as to whether he will request political asylum in Belgium. Carles Puigdemont arrived in Brussels on Monday, the same day that Spanish prosecutors announced they were seeking rebellion, sedition and embezzlement charges against deposed Catalan officials, including the ex-regional leader.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said that Puigdemont will speak publicly Tuesday in Brussels. Over the weekend, a Belgian government official said that it wouldn’t be “unrealistic” for Puigdemont to request asylum.

Belgium allows asylum requests by citizens of other European Union nations, and in the past, some Basque separatists weren’t extradited to Spain while they sought asylum, causing years of friction.