Britain's foreign minister said Monday he was "reasonably confident" of securing a post-Brexit treaty with the European Union over the future of Gibraltar, an enclave on Spain's southern tip. Gibraltar and Spain agreed on a framework for the treaty on December 31 but the details must be settled between Madrid and London by the end of June. "Everyone knows that these negotiations can be difficult but I think we dealt with a lot of the stumbling blocks and surmounted them in the negotiations we had over the Christmas period," British foreign minister Dominic Raab told a joint news conference here with Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo. "Obviously it always takes goodwill on all sides but actually I'm reasonably confident...that we've got a good track and again, with hard work and goodwill on all sides, I think we can turn this framework into a legally-binding treaty and I think that's good news all round." Under terms of the framework accord, the tiny territory would become part of the Schengen passport-free zone, which covers 26 European countries (most of the 27 EU members, along with Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Lichtenstein). Spain would be responsible for managing the Schengen arrangement which would be implemented by Frontex, the agency charged with protecting the EU's external borders. Negotiations for the treaty have yet to commence and the European Commission is finalising a mandate that must be approved by the European Council before the talks can start. srt/ds/wai