Catalonia president-elect calls on Spanish PM to talk with separatist leaders

Catalonia’s president-elect has called on Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to talk with the region’s separatist leaders. Catalan MPs in Barcelona elected separatist Quim Torra on Monday to lead their region. He has vowed to build an independent Catalan republic by working under the leadership of predecessor Carles Puigdemont, who is in Germany fighting extradition to Spain. Speaking at a joint news conference with Puigdemont in Berlin on Tuesday, Torra said: “Please, Mr. Rajoy, put a date and a place and we will be there… no preconditions, let’s talk about everything, but let’s talk.” Torra said he also wants to visit all the separatist leaders held in Spanish jails over last year’s outlawed independence referendum, AP reports.