Historic summit in Cardiff between leaders of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Scottish National Party (SNP) leader and Scottish Prime Minister John Swinney, Plaid Cymru leader and Welsh Prime Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth and Sinn Féin Deputy President and Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill met at the meeting held in Cardiff.

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald also attended the summit.

The meeting attracted attention because it was the first time that political movements advocating separation from the United Kingdom were in power in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland at the same time.

In the joint statement made by the three parties, it was emphasized that the political balances in the United Kingdom had changed.

While the leaders gave the message, "The political landscape on these islands is changing," they said, "There can be no clearer indication that Westminster's era is coming to an end."

Scottish Prime Minister John Swinney described the Cardiff meeting as "a critical turning point in the United Kingdom's constitutional journey."

Leaders argued that the political momentum behind the demands for independence and constitutional change is strengthening and gave the message: "We believe that constitutional change will come."

JOINT CALL FOR THE RIGHT TO SELF-DETERMINATION

One of the most important topics of the meeting was the right to self-determination.

SNP, Plaid Cymru and Sinn Féin stated that the people in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should decide their future through democratic methods.

The leaders also called on the UK government and asked the London administration to "prepare, plan and facilitate the process" for possible changes so that each country can determine its own constitutional future.

Following the meetings in Cardiff, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the three parties.

With the agreement, the parties committed to closer cooperation on economy, energy, relations with Europe and constitutional issues.

The goals of the agreement were to create a stronger and fairer economy, to expand the opportunities of countries on their own energy resources, and to strengthen relations with Europe.

The three parties also argued that Brexit harmed economies and expressed the view that their countries' future lies within the European Union.

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald described the signing of the agreement as “historic”.

“This is the moment when we assert together our inalienable right to decide our futures,” McDonald said.

While the leaders acknowledged that the constitutional goals of the three political movements were different from each other, they emphasized that each country should determine its future "in its own way and in its own time."

THE GOALS OF THE THREE PARTIES ARE DIFFERENT FROM EACH OTHER

The SNP advocates for Scotland to separate from the United Kingdom and become an independent state.

While Plaid Cymru also embraces the goal of an independent Wales, the Welsh government does not plan to hold an independence referendum in the current legislative term. However, he demands that the power to decide on a referendum be transferred to Wales.

Sinn Féin, on the other hand, advocates Northern Ireland separating from the United Kingdom and uniting with the Republic of Ireland.

The Cardiff summit also caused controversy in Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland Deputy Prime Minister from the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), Emma Little-Pengelly, emphasized that Michelle O'Neill attended the meeting within the scope of her political duty in Sinn Féin, not on behalf of the Northern Ireland government.

Under the power-sharing system in Northern Ireland, the First Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister have equal powers and responsibilities.

Little-Pengelly accused O'Neill of using the position of First Minister to further his political aims of breaking up the United Kingdom. Sinn Féin, on the other hand, stated that the meeting was held between political parties and that it was natural for movements defending the right to self-determination to work together.

A NEW CONSTITUTIONAL ERA FOR THE UNITED KINGDOM?

The agreement signed in Cardiff was one of the most visible joint political steps to date between the three nationalist movements on independence and constitutional change.

Although the parties underlined that their goals were different from each other, they agreed to develop a stronger common attitude against the current Westminster-centered governance model.

The meeting further escalated the debate over the constitutional future of the United Kingdom, as debates about Scottish independence, the future status of Wales and Irish unification gained renewed strength in the same period.