The lehendakari (President of the Basque Government), Iñigo Urkulla, acted as mediator leading to Catalan president Carles Puigdemont's decision today to call early elections in Catalonia to avoid the application of article 155 of the Constitution.
According to Europa Press, sources with knowledge of the process say that Urkullu, of the EAJ (Basque Nationalist Party), held conversations for this purpose in the last few days up to Wednesday itself.
Also taking part in the mediation process were a group of Catalan businesspeople and directors, including Juan José López Burniol, Marian Puig, Emilio Cuatrecasas and Joaquim Coello, representing a wider group of institutions and society.