Spain’s Solar Project on Disputed Islands Sparks Tension with Morocco

The Moroccan media have reacted to this installation, which they see as a "military provocation" by Spain towards Morocco. The kingdom has always claimed these islands, the Velez de la Gomera rock as well as the enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla.

Located 3.5 kilometers off the Moroccan coast, east of Melilla, the Chafarinas Islands have been under Spanish sovereignty since 1848, the year they were occupied by the command of General Serrano, explains researcher Santiago Domínguez in an article titled "A Brief History of the Chafarinas Islands".

As for the island of Alborán, it is located in the western part of the Mediterranean Sea, about 55 km north of the Moroccan coast and 85 km south of the province of Almería. It has been under Spanish sovereignty since 1540, after the Battle of Alboran.

According to El Economista, the installation of the solar power plant on the Chafarinas Islands is part of a project of the Ministry of Defense. Estimated at more than 550,000 euros, it aims to provide electrical energy to the army unit on detachment on the archipelago.