“Morocco does not represent a threat to Spain.” This is the assessment of the head of the Spanish National Security Department, reporting to the Presidency of the Government, in response to questions from Iberian media. “Currently, in our national security strategy, the Moroccan threat is not mentioned. We have working groups on Ceuta and Melilla, as well as all the other autonomous communities, because it is our job to defend our State and for the moment there is nothing specific on this subject,” said General Loreto Gutiérrez Hurtado, in office since November 2023, on Monday, July 1.
As a reminder, in November 2021, the current head of the armed forces in Spain, Admiral Teodoro López Calderón, had indicated that “Morocco does not constitute a threat to Ceuta and Melilla”. Statements then decried by right-wing and far-right parties.
This is not the first time that this government body has not included Morocco in the list of countries that directly threaten Spanish security. In March 2024, the Department of Security had excluded the kingdom from the states accused of interference in Spain’s internal affairs, such as China and Russia.
The Department of National Security analyzed, in a report published in August 2021, the consequences of the recognition by the United States of the Moroccan nature of Western Sahara on Spain and the Sahel. In March 2022, the head of government Pedro Sanchez welcomed, in a message addressed to King Mohammed VI, the Moroccan plan for autonomy in the Sahara.
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