REACTION TO CATALAN PARLIAMENT DECLARING INDEPENDENCE FROM SPAIN IN CONTENTIOUS VOTE:
* Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy tweeted: "I ask for calm from all Spaniards. The rule of law will restore legality in Catalonia."
* Catalan President Carles Puigdemont in the regional parliament as the crisis came to a head: "In the coming hours we must keep our country alive. We must do it in a peaceful, civilised and dignified way, as we have always done and we will keep doing."
* WikiLeaks founder Australian Julian Assange tweeted: "An enormous defining Gandhian struggle will now commence in Catalonia to secure their declaration of independence against the full weight of the Spanish state, from the use of force, to financial interdiction, censorship, computer hacking, intelligence, propaganda and diplomacy."
* President of the European Council Donald Tusk tweeted: "For EU nothing changes. Spain remains our only interlocutor. I hope the Spanish government favours force of argument, not argument of force."
* French President Emmanuel Macron said: "I have always said I have one interlocutor in Spain. It's Prime Minister Rajoy. Spain has the rule of law, it has constitutional rules, and he wants them to be respected. He has my full support."
* A German government spokesman said: "Spain's sovereignty and territorial integrity are and remain inviolable. A unilaterally proclaimed independence by Catalonia harms these essential principles. The federal government doesn't recognise this sort of independence declaration."
* British Prime Minister Theresa May office said: "The UK does not and will not recognise the unilateral declaration of independence made by the Catalan regional parliament. It is based on a vote that was declared illegal by the Spanish courts. We continue to want to see the rule of law upheld, the Spanish constitution respected, and Spanish unity preserved."
* The EU Commission declined to comment immediately after the vote, but President Jean-Claude Juncker has repeatedly said the debate is an internal Spanish issue.
* After Madrid authorised direct rule over the region, the Catalan National Assembly called on civil servants to respond to orders from the Spanish government with "peaceful resistance".
*The US State Department in a written statement: "Catalonia is an integral part of Spain, and the United States supports the Spanish government's constitutional measures to keep Spain strong and united."
* In September, President Donald Trump said Spain should stay united, branding a secession vote by the Catalan regional governments as "foolish".
* A NATO official said: "Spain is a committed ally, which makes important contributions to our shared security. The Catalonia issue is a domestic matter which should be resolved within Spain's constitutional order."
* Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel tweeted: "A political crisis can only be solved through dialogue. We call for a peaceful solution with respect for national and international order."
