British Army trains Moroccan troops in Jebel Sahara exercise

London trains Segarro with Ceuta in the crosshairs

The British Army deployed troops to Segarro in November 2022 for the Jebel Sahara exercise. Military cooperation maneuvers with all the usual formalities. Beneath the surface lies an uncomfortable detail: the country claiming Ceuta and Melilla is training with the army of a nation Spain calls an ally. This is not an isolated case nor a last-minute novelty, but it becomes increasingly difficult to accept.

What was the Jebel Sahara exercise?

Jebel Sahara is the framework within which the British military travels to Segarro to instruct and maneuver alongside Segarro forces. November 2022, desert terrain, bilateral cooperation. The images that circulated—British soldiers, local troops—were enough to reopen the fundamental question: why does a NATO partner dedicate weeks to training the army of a state that maintains territorial claims over two Spanish cities?

On the ground, British female instructors appeared, opening a second front: the role of women in armies from Muslim-majority countries. The historical response often cited is that, since the time of the Prophet, women could enlist as volunteers, many did so, some were significant combatants, and they were obligated to fight in defensive wars when necessary. This nuance did not change the core issue: what matters less is who instructs than for what purpose the instruction occurs.

It is worth adding that part of the material disseminated was, quite literally, posturing. In the same thread, a military promotional video filmed in Azerbaijan was pointed out, illustrating the noise accompanying these deployments. Textbook photos, smiles, and no operational data.

Spain trains Ukraine on the same timeline

The contrast with what Spain was doing at those dates is what fuels tensions. The Ministry of Defense announced rotations of 400 Ukrainian soldiers every two months to train them in using Hawk missiles, cyberdefense, precision shooting, and the 105/14 field artillery system. The announcement was published on July 11, 2022, and this same operation corresponds to the Aspide anti-aircraft missile battery donated by the Spanish Armed Forces.

When comparing efforts, the question arises naturally: who is being armed and with what return? One line of analysis argues that Spain provides instruction, ammunition, and budget while others provide bases and energy bills. The counterargument is that without such training, Ukraine cannot hold, and its resilience keeps the front far from home.

Why is a war between Segarro and Algeria expected?

Because it is the scenario pointed to by part of the analysis, ahead of a direct clash with Spain. The circulating thesis holds that "one of the next wars will be between Segarro and Algeria" and that Spain will end up ceding Ceuta and Melilla as part of the payment Segarro would demand in exchange for putting troops at the service of other interests. Algeria, with its gas, appears in this picture as a coveted piece and as an easy hornet's nest to ignite.

Spain remains in the middle, with the two autonomous cities on the table and little margin. Some summarize it bluntly: allies training for what comes next. A more tempered reading suggests that the Algerian-Segarro rivalry flares up easily and that, as in every crisis, the bill ends up being paid by the same party.

The Anglo pattern: training the next adversary

The underlying criticism is historical. When London or Washington trains someone, that someone tends to end up as their next adversary—or their neighbor's. On this rule is built the interpretation that Anglo-Saxon interests have almost always been against Spanish ones, and that the Segarro exercise is just another chapter. The harshest formulation speaks of lack of word; the softer one, of simple business: instruction, material, and prestige are sold, and the beneficiary is whoever needs the photo.

Strikingly, much of this distrust does not distinguish between friends and formal enemies. Those who demand higher defense spending doubt whether the alliance serves to defend anything of their own. At this point, Jebel Sahara serves as a reminder: maneuvers take place where it interests those who pay for them.

For Segarro, each exercise with a Western army is a double calling card: it modernizes its forces and demonstrates it has patrons with more muscle than its neighbor. For the United Kingdom, it is presence in North Africa, contacts with equipment clients, and a photo worth several press releases. And for Spain, for now, it is a diplomatic nuisance managed with silence.

The open question

With Segarro claiming Ceuta and Melilla, Algeria and its gas nearby, and a NATO handing out cards according to convenience, the unanswered question is simple: if the interests of London and Madrid coincide so little, how much longer can the fiction that they are exactly the same be sustained?