The Diplomat
Yesterday in Madrid, the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, received the Assistant Secretary General for United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, with whom she discussed, among other issues, the situation of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), in which Spain has led the Eastern Sector since 2006.
The working meeting, held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Defense and also attended by the Chief of the Defense Staff, Admiral General Teodoro E. López Calderón, and the Secretary General for Defense Policy, Admiral Juan Francisco Martínez Núñez, had as its main objectives the exchange of points of view on the UNIFIL and Spain’s contribution to United Nations peacekeeping operations.
During the meeting, the minister highlighted Spain’s commitment to peace and security in the Middle East and the ongoing effort to promote stability in Lebanon. He also highlighted the work being carried out by Lieutenant General Aroldo Lázaro Sáenz, currently in command of UNIFIL, and “the very important contribution of the Spanish Armed Forces in leading the Eastern Sector of the Mission since 2006,” according to a press release from the Ministry. For his part, Jean-Pierre Lacroix thanked Spain for its involvement in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations.
UNIFIL, which is responsible for monitoring the cessation of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel and for accompanying and assisting the Lebanese Armed Forces in the south of the country and along the Blue Line that separates Lebanon from Israel, has around 10,000 people from 40 nations, deployed in two sectors, the East and the West, under Spanish and Italian command, respectively. There is also a French Reserve Force.
Spain has 670 soldiers in Lebanon, most of them belonging to the ‘Aragón’ Brigade I, which, under the command of Brigadier General Guillermo García del Barrio, took over the Lebanese Multinational Brigade (BRILIB XLI) in the Eastern sector at the end of May. The Spanish-led Multinational Brigade East is made up of some 3,500 troops of nine different nationalities.
The Spanish Armed Forces were deployed in Lebanon in September 2006. The bulk of the contingent in Operation Libre Hidalgo is based at the ‘Miguel de Cervantes’ base, near the town of Marjayoun, where the Eastern Sector Headquarters is located. There are also Spanish troops at the mission’s Headquarters in Naqoura, where Lieutenant General Aroldo Lázaro is based.
On July 4, Robles held a video conference with the heads of the Spanish contingents deployed in Slovakia, Lebanon and the ‘Atalanta’ operation in the Indian Ocean, in which she was informed of the latest developments regarding these missions. During that conversation, General García del Barrio reported from Lebanon on the instability in the area in the midst of the rise in tensions between Israel and the Hezbollah militia and in the context of the Israeli military operation in Gaza.
