GIBRALTAR (AP) — The chief minister of Gibraltar says the British territory's post-Brexit future rests on strengthening its ties with the United Kingdom.

Chief Minister Fabian Picardo tells The Associated Press that his goal after Britain leaves the European Union is to "cement the relationship with the United Kingdom" in terms of both sovereignty and a commercial relationship.

Picardo says he wants to "establish that bilateral relationship of trade to continue the morning after Brexit as if the single market between Gibraltar and the U.K. seamlessly moved from one moment to the next."

Gibraltar, a rocky outcrop at the tip of the Iberian Peninsula with 32,000 residents, has strong economic connections with surrounding Spanish regions.

In last year's vote, 96 percent of Gibraltarians voted for Britain to remain in the EU.