25 June 1982 had been fixed as the date for the renewal of talks between Britain and Spain and the opening of the border between Spain and Gibraltar.

In anticipation of the talks, Spain realised that the Falklands/ Malvinas War had rather changed the atmosphere. In particular, although Britain remained committed to the Lisbon Agreement to resolve all the differences between it and Spain over the Rock, Britain's attitude had changed ever since Spain aligned itself with Panama in the UN Security Council resolution, which called for a cease-fire in the Falklands/Malvinas without it being linked to an Argentine withdrawal. It was also reported in Spain that Britain was concerned about the fact that during the South Atlantic crisis the Spanish media (particularly television) had given greater credence to reports from Buenos Aires than to those emanating from London.

In the climate of euphoria in London following the Falklands/ Malvinas victory, it was not surprising, therefore, that there were those in Spain who suspected that the British representatives might go to Sintra ‘simply to have their photo taken’ and who, in the absence prior to the talks of any firm indication of Britain's stance, preferred the talks to be cancelled. There were others who felt that Britain might be more sympathetic to negotiations over Gibraltar, given the contrast between Madrid's civilised approach and the Argentinians' use of force in the South Atlantic.

Anticipation was greatest in the frontier town of La Linea. It had suffered most when the frontier was closed in 1969, both in trade and in jobs.