Spain Alarmed as Morocco and Algeria Escalate Military Buildup in North Africa

The newspaper El Plural echoed this concern, highlighting Algeria’s desire to modernize its arsenal, notably with Russian submarines equipped with missiles, a move made in response to the improvement of Morocco’s military capabilities, which is acquiring weapons from the United States and Israel.

Spain maintains strained diplomatic relations with the two Maghreb countries. Although relations with Morocco are generally good, those with Algeria have deteriorated following Madrid’s recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara. This decision marked a turning point in Spain’s position on this sensitive issue, as Madrid had previously adopted a neutral stance, the newspaper recalls.

Algeria had reacted vehemently to Spain’s change of position on the issue, calling it unacceptable on moral and historical grounds. Algiers recalled its ambassador to Madrid in March 2022. The Algerian president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, deplored this change of course, stating that Spain has "failed in its duty to find a solution to the conflict".

This crisis also has repercussions on Spanish domestic politics. Many deputies, including from the left-wing and right-wing opposition and the Unidos Podemos party, a partner in the socialist government of Sanchez, voted against this change in foreign policy. Madrid remains concerned about the arms race between Morocco and Algeria, which increases the concern of Spanish military circles, fearing that this will reduce the military advantage still held by Spain.