DistantNews
Support us
🇪🇸 Spain /Conflict & Security

Eurofighters take to the skies over Ceuta

From La Vanguardia · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Analysis Named sources Ongoing story
  • Spanish Eurofighter Typhoon jets flew over Ceuta during exercises designed to improve coordination between air force and ground artillery units.
  • The flights came amid a diplomatic crisis with Morocco, even as Spanish officials stressed the importance of maintaining cooperation and good neighbourly relations.
  • The article criticizes Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s handling of the crisis and contrasts his caution with the military display over Ceuta.

The message from Madrid had been one of caution. Then, on Tuesday, Spanish Eurofighter Typhoons flew over Ceuta during exercises aimed at sharpening coordination between the air force and ground artillery units. Morocco took note.

Respect for Morocco.

· Félix BolañosThe Spanish minister called for restraint during a parliamentary committee meeting.

The flight followed a week in which Minister Félix Bolaños called for “respect” for Morocco, describing it as a country with which Spain must cooperate and maintain good neighbourly relations. On Monday, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he had no reproach for Morocco. By Thursday, however, he opened a parliamentary appearance by recalling that the lions on the Spanish Parliament’s main staircase had been cast from bronze taken from Moroccan cannons at the 1860 Battle of Wad-Ras.

Sánchez then delivered the line that defined the confrontation: “Ceuta and Melilla will be Spanish until the end of time.” The article presents the flyover as a change in tone after weeks of diplomatic restraint. The opposition leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, had said in August that his first foreign trip as prime minister would be to Morocco. “I have an absolute interest in getting along with Morocco. I only ask that it respect me; I will respect it,” he said.

Morocco is a country with which we must cooperate and maintain good neighbourly relations.

· Félix BolañosBolaños explained why Spain should preserve its relationship with Morocco.

That position reflected the practical relationship between the two countries. Feijóo understood Morocco’s role in controlling irregular migration and the importance of their intertwined economic interests, particularly in Andalusia. Andalusian President Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla has likewise shown caution, the article says. Ten days after what Spain’s right wing called the “invasion” of Ceuta, Feijóo’s message to Rabat remained clear: he did not want to raise tensions.

Ceuta and Melilla will be Spanish until the end of time.

· Pedro SánchezThe prime minister asserted Spain’s position on the two North African enclaves in Congress.

But the crisis entered a second phase with the outbreak of anger in Ceuta. The article argues that Sánchez compounded the situation by clinging through August to an old Spanish habit in difficult moments: remaining impassive. He stayed at La Mareta, the official holiday residence in Lanzarote, while keeping daily contact with ministers. The Eurofighters over Ceuta suggested that the music had changed.

I have an absolute interest in getting along with Morocco. I only ask that it respect me; I will respect it.

· Alberto Núñez FeijóoThe opposition leader described his intended approach to relations with Rabat.
About this summary

Originally published by La Vanguardia in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog