United Left (IU) has submitted a document to Congress demanding explanations from the Government regarding the migration crisis in Ceuta that began on July 30 and 31, when 80,000 people illegally crossed the border from Morocco. In the document, which includes seven questions, they highlight issues related to Spain’s military and technological dependence on the United States and Israel, countries which, according to the group, exert “coercive pressure of a migratory, diplomatic, and digital nature” on Spain.
The questions are directed directly at the Ministry of Defense, questioning whether they plan to “review and define an arms procurement policy that reduces dependence” on both countries. They also ask if the Government will promote Spanish cybersecurity companies to avoid “the dominant model led by Palantir Technologies,” the American software and artificial intelligence company linked to defense.
The leftist party that is part of Sumar also questions the Executive about digital sovereignty and Spain’s geopolitical repositioning. They inquire whether the Executive will review the location of “strategic technological infrastructures dependent on NATO” and whether it will approach its cybersecurity policy “from a comprehensive and autonomous perspective” in response to what they attribute to pressures from the United States and the Atlantic alliance. Along these lines, they want to know if the Government is considering cooperation alternatives with the BRICS “against the current dependence” on American and Israeli suppliers.
In the text, signed by three IU deputies, they speak of “the so-called forms of unconventional hybrid warfare” and hostility characterized by “strong coercive pressure: migratory, diplomatic, and digital.” In their view, this pressure is always maintained “just below the threshold that would justify a conventional military response.” They also point to the “strategic triangle formed by Morocco, the United States, and Israel, consolidated under the Abraham Accords,” and state that Morocco “has perfected the use of asymmetric tactics to advance its sovereignty objectives” thanks to this alliance.
They also highlight that the United States is “the largest arms supplier to Morocco, responsible for 60% of its defense imports,” and note that reports and statements have been presented in the U.S. Congress that classify Ceuta and Melilla as “territories under Moroccan sovereignty.” For this reason, they argue that the North American country “would systematically act against the European Union and our country.”
As with the United States, the text states that Israel provides military material to the North African country with “state-of-the-art missile defense systems” and, for this reason, warns of “the high dependence on non-European suppliers and technologies” as a source of “clear vulnerability.” Additionally, IU points to the “alleged use of military cyber espionage software, such as Pegasus, against the telecommunications of the Spanish Executive’s leadership” and criticizes the classification of Ceuta and Melilla as “anachronistic colonial enclaves” in forums such as the United Nations.
The text mentions that Morocco has exploited what they call the “gray zone” in this recent crisis: “A conflict space in which strong coercive pressure is exerted without resorting to the use of conventional military force or declaring an open war.” They denounce that “the Alaouite regime” maintained a “calculated ambiguity” while there was a peak of “between 50,000 and 60,000 registered people” swimming across the breakwaters.
The Government has a regulatory period of 30 days to respond to the questions, but parliamentary sources indicate that “most written responses take longer.” Next week, seven ministers will appear before the lower house to respond in different committees about the Ceuta migration crisis.
