The Government assures that Spain’s exclusion from a strategic US maritime route does not affect defense cooperation

Eduardo González The Government has downplayed Spain's exclusion from a strategic maritime route with the United States, a "sovereign decision" by the United States "relating to international trade" that does not affect "bilateral defense cooperation with the United States or the framework for cooperation with a NATO ally." Last August, the United States decided to exclude Spain from a strategic maritime container route. This measure particularly affects the port of Algeciras, which until then was part of a route exchange plan between the East and West coasts of the United States and strategic ports in Japan, South Korea, China, and India, essential for supply chains for global trade and military logistics operations. The agreement, active since February of this year and initially including Spain, was amended in June to eliminate Spain's participation. As a result of this measure, some traffic heading to Spain will now be routed to the Moroccan port of Tangier. The shipping companies involved, supervised by the United States, have asserted that this amendment is due to operational reasons and the need to reduce costs (including EU regulatory costs) and transit times. However, this measure coincided with an investigation opened by the US Federal Maritime Commission into the decision by Spanish authorities to close the port of Algeciras to two US container ships bound for Israel in November 2024. The explanations given by the Spanish government, which they based on national sovereignty, did not satisfy the United States. In early September, the People's Party (PP) Parliamentary Group in Congress filed a series of written questions in which they warned that the National Security Strategy "identifies the control of maritime routes as an essential element for the defense of Spanish interests" and, therefore, "being removed from a strategic route could weaken Spain's ability to fulfill its international commitments." The People's Party (PP) also noted that the Strait of Gibraltar is one of the world's main maritime transit points, and Spain, through the port of Algeciras and its naval deployment in the area, has played "a historic role in the security of these routes." Therefore, "the United States' decision to exclude our country from a strategic maritime route raises serious doubts about the extent of our influence in the area." The People's Party (PP) also warned that the US's exclusion of Spain from a strategic maritime route "could be interpreted as a ceding of prominence to other countries, such as Morocco, which in recent years has strengthened its ports and presence in the Strait, to the detriment of our position." It also noted that "the port of Algeciras is the leader in container traffic in Spain and one of the most important in the Mediterranean." Therefore, Spain's exclusion "could have direct consequences for port traffic, employment, and maritime security in the province of Cádiz." In its responses, issued on October 14 and published this Monday in the Official Gazette of the Congress of Deputies (BOCG), the Government asserts that the measure adopted by the United States "is a sovereign decision regarding international trade, without any impact on bilateral defense cooperation with the United States, nor on the framework of cooperation with a NATO ally." "Within the framework of the 1988 Defense Cooperation Agreement and subsequent updates signed between the Kingdom of Spain and the United States of America, maritime transit of U.S. vessels at the Rota Naval Base continues, under complete normality, in accordance with the requirements and procedures contained in the Agreement and its annexes," it continues.

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