Catalan leader seeking two-month reprieve for talks with Spain
Catalan regional government president Carles Puigdemont delivers a speech on the sidelines of a wreath-laying ceremony commemorating the 77th anniversary of the death of Catalan leader Lluis Companys at the Montjuic Cemetery in Barcelona on October 15, 2017. Companys had proclaimed a "Catalan state in the Spanish federal republic" in 1934 to oppose the conservatives who governed in Madrid. Exiled in France, Companys was denounced by the Nazis in 1940 and handed over to Spain where he was executed. Photo: AFP
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His comments came as the deadline set by Madrid to clarify his intentions for the Spanish region came to a close.
Puigdemont last week made an ambiguous announcement, saying he accepted the mandate for "Catalonia to become an independent state" following a banned referendum, in which separatist leaders say 90 percent opted to split from Spain -- even if more than half of eligible voters stayed home.
