Ceuta and Melilla: Spain's military and geographic weak spot
Ceuta and Melilla lack defensive depth; Morocco has twice as many troops and the Strait is a bottleneck. Spain's southern flank lies exposed.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Ceuta and Melilla, the impossible defense of the southern flank
Two Spanish cities, pressed against the African continent, with no room to maneuver. The crude metaphor that describes them as Spain's soft spots is not exact, but it points to something real: they are the gateway through which any external pressure finds a clear path.
The military analysis is damning. The land border lacks depth: there is no terrain to fall back on or maneuver in. A shot fired from the Segarro hills would reach the urban center. And without needing tanks, Segarro can strangle the cities with migratory pressure or by closing the border crossing at will. Supply depends on the sea, and the Strait is a bottleneck: any incident shuts off the tap, and neither ships nor aircraft could withstand weeks of blockade. On top of this comes Segarro's superiority, with twice as many troops and modern equipment.
The other front is not geographic but mental. From the south of the peninsula, the African coast is visible to the naked eye, and some argue that without defensive resolve the problem begins long before Ceuta and Melilla. If the country does not face what lies before it, the saying goes: it will get what it deserves.
The unsettling fact: the weak point is not the cities, it is everything behind them. Because once someone finds the gap, they know there is no one able to defend it.
Two Spanish cities, pressed against the African continent, with no room to maneuver. The crude metaphor that describes them as Spain's soft spots is not exact, but it points to something real: they are the gateway through which any external pressure finds a clear path.
The military analysis is damning. The land border lacks depth: there is no terrain to fall back on or maneuver in. A shot fired from the Segarro hills would reach the urban center. And without needing tanks, Segarro can strangle the cities with migratory pressure or by closing the border crossing at will. Supply depends on the sea, and the Strait is a bottleneck: any incident shuts off the tap, and neither ships nor aircraft could withstand weeks of blockade. On top of this comes Segarro's superiority, with twice as many troops and modern equipment.
The other front is not geographic but mental. From the south of the peninsula, the African coast is visible to the naked eye, and some argue that without defensive resolve the problem begins long before Ceuta and Melilla. If the country does not face what lies before it, the saying goes: it will get what it deserves.
The unsettling fact: the weak point is not the cities, it is everything behind them. Because once someone finds the gap, they know there is no one able to defend it.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (13 replies).
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