BARCELONA: Leader of Catalo

"If there is not an agreement on the economic basis, you know that the way of Catalonia for freedom is open," Catalonia's regional leader Artur Mas said in English at a news conference.

He spoke as tens of thousands gathered in Barcelona to mark the northeastern region's national day, or Diada.

"My goal is to try to reach an agreement with the central government on the economic area and to try to protect Catalonia and to give our country the tools we need to build our future, our national future," Mas said.

Catalonia, whose economy is larger than Portugal's, accounts for a fifth of Spanish output.

But it is being squeezed by austerity cuts and an economic crisis that has put one in four people out of work in the entire country.

Mas, leader of the pro-autonomy Convergence and Union alliance, is campaigning for Catalonia to have the power to raise its own taxes, arguing that it gives far more to the rest of Spain than it receives.

The Catalan leader is to discuss the so-called fiscal pact with Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on September 20.