It's only a tiny speck on the map of Europe, but the United Kingdom territory of Gibraltar has already thrown an early spanner in the workings of the complex Brexit negotiations.
Johnson said Monday that Gibraltar's sovereignty "is not going to change and can not conceivably change without the express support and consent of the people of Gibraltar and the United Kingdom".
The future of Gibraltar, a rocky British outpost on Spain's southern tip, has become the first major dispute of the exit negotiations since Prime Minister Theresa May filed the formal divorce papers on March 29.
British rhetoric quickly heated up after the EU's Brexit negotiating guidelines released on Friday included a section saying Spain must have a say on any future trade deal involving Gibraltar.
Spanish diplomats were smart to see an opportunity to assert the country's position on Gibraltar as British and European officials make their opening gambits for the Brexit talks, said Angel Talavera, an economist at Oxford Economics in London.
The British Conservative Party leader, Lord Michael Howardin, claimed that the United Kingdom would be prepared to go to war to defend "The Rock".
Spanish Foreign Minister Alfonso Dastis said "the Spanish government is a little surprised, actually, by the tone that has been generated in Britain, a country traditionally known for its composure".
Britain and Spain's mutual European Union membership helped temper Spanish actions.
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Currently, Gibraltar is mostly self-governing, and its chief minister said living under Spanish rule would be "absolutely bad".
In an effort to provide reassurance to Gibraltar, Downing Street said Mrs May "reiterated our long-standing position that the United Kingdom remains steadfastly committed to our support for Gibraltar, its people and its economy" in her call with Mr Picardo.
The clause means that Spain, which will still be a member of the European Union when Britain leaves, could potentially block Gibraltar's access to a trade accord negotiated between the bloc and London.
Voters in Gibraltar, a strategically important rocky outpost at the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea, rejected the idea of Britain sharing sovereignty with Spain by 99 percent to 1 percent in 2002, but overwhelmingly backed remaining in the European Union in June's Brexit referendum.
"They do not weaken or undermine the legal basis in global law for British sovereignty over Gibraltar, including British Gibraltar territorial waters".
Mrs May said: "Our position on Gibraltar has not changed".
"Spain is going to jump at this opportunity to try and take advantage of the situation but when it comes to the crunch I think we've got to take one step at a time and not overreact, be calm", said firefighter Liam Byrne, speaking in a street on the peninsula.
Chief Minister Fabian Picardo was reassured by Brexit Secretary David Davis that the United Kingdom wants to deliver "the exact same benefits" for the United Kingdom and Gibraltar in agreements with the EU.
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