The Maó Naval Station (in Spanish, Mahón), in the east of the island of Menorca, has become one of the three Spanish logistical support bases for NATO ships operating in the Mediterranean, along with Rota ( Cádiz) and Cartagena (Murcia), as confirmed by government sources. In April of last year, the Spanish Government offered Maó to the Atlantic Alliance as a “port with permanent diplomatic authorization” so that allied ships participating in Operation Sea Guardian can dock and anchor, and it has been operating since then. as such. This operation, led by the Allied Maritime Command (Marcom), based in Northwood (United Kingdom), has as its missions deterrence and protection against terrorist attacks, knowledge of the maritime environment or the development of regional security capabilities.
Although the Headquarters of the Naval Sector of the Balearic Islands is at the Porto Pi Naval Station, in Palma de Mallorca, the port of Maó presents better conditions as a logistical support point for NATO, according to the sources consulted. In addition to being located inside a large natural port, the Maó base has large fuel tanks and water cisterns, as well as disused underground tunnels, which facilitates the supply of NATO ships that anchor or dock in its docks.
Being located at the eastern end of the Balearic archipelago, it is less than 400 kilometers away from the ports of Marseille (France), Algiers (Algeria) or Alghero, on the Italian island of Sardinia; and in the center of the western Mediterranean. However, unlike the naval bases of Rota and Cartagena, which house large Navy units such as frigates and submarines, Maó has more modest military facilities, whose origins date back to the British occupation of the island in the 19th century. XVIII.
Operation Sea Guardian, inaugurated in 2016, is the heir to
Active Endeavor
, the operation launched by NATO after the September 11, 2001 attacks against the Twin Towers and the Pentagon in the United States. Among other objectives, it has been entrusted with guaranteeing freedom of movement in the Mediterranean, which could be threatened if attacks such as those carried out by the Houthi militias in the Red Sea occur; but it is also about preventing the planting of mines, the smuggling of equipment that could be used for the production of weapons of mass destruction; or acts of piracy such as those that occur in the Gulf of Guinea or the Horn of Africa.
The Spanish Armed Forces have been participating in Sea Guardian
for two decades ,
and in 2024 they are expected to contribute, during different periods throughout the year, a submarine, a maritime surveillance plane, a frigate and a supply ship, in addition of a patrol car with a special operations team permanently alerted to act in case of crisis. Along with the embarked units, Spain provides the naval bases of Rota, Cartagena and Maó as Forward Logistic Sites (FLS) or Advanced Logistics Places. The cost of Spanish participation in this operation exceeds 27 million annually.
Maó has also become a port of call for NATO's permanent fleets, both frigate fleets (known as SNMG) and minehunters or SNMCMG, which are part of the Atlantic Alliance Response Force. (NRF) in case of crisis. Between April 30 and May 2 of last year, the SNMCMG-2, made up of a Turkish logistics ship and three Italian, Greek and Spanish minehunters, visited the Maó base. For its part, the SNMG-2 fleet visited the Menorcan port twice, in October 2020 and May 2021, with the Spanish frigates
Álvaro de Bazán
and
Méndez Núñez
respectively as flagships. In April 2022, Maó hosted a total of 14 warships from nine allied countries that participated in the Esp Minex-22 exercise.
The wars in Ukraine and Gaza have increased allied naval maneuvers: since January 11 and until July, the Spanish frigate
Almirante Juan de Borbón
has command of the first fleet of NATO frigates (SNMC-1). For its part, the logistics ship
Cantabria
has joined the same mission between January and March; while Segura will be in the allied minesweeper group between March and June. The total cost of Spanish participation in NATO's permanent fleets and air defense reached 204 million last year.
The incorporation of the port of Maó to the list of support bases for NATO fleets underlines the weight of Spain in the allied naval strategy, according to experts. The most important role, however, belongs to the American destroyers stationed at the Rota naval base, which are part of the naval component of the Atlantic Alliance's anti-missile shield and last year patrolled the Black Sea and the eastern Mediterranean in a deterrent display against to Russia and Iran following instructions from the Pentagon. After having exchanged the four Arleigh Burke class ships that arrived in Rota since 2014 for more modern ones, the fleet's fifth destroyer is expected to join the Cádiz base in September and the sixth in 2025.
Beyond the naval component, Spain contributes to the reinforcement of NATO's Eastern border with a tactical subgroup of 600 troops integrated into the multinational brigade commanded by Canada in Latvia, which last year had a cost of 72.7 million. In addition, starting in July, Spain will lead a multinational brigade in Slovakia, with 700 soldiers, and will contribute a tactical subgroup of 250 Marines to the brigade under French command in Romania. For its part, the Air Force plans to deploy three contingents of eight combat aircraft and 150 soldiers in the Baltic republics and the Balkans for two periods of four months and one of six weeks, as well as an in-flight refueling plane for two periods of one month each. Finally, the Army deploys a Nasams anti-aircraft missile battery in Amari (Latvia) and another Patriot anti-missile battery in Adana (Turkey), while the Air Force has a surveillance radar in Schidu (Romania), always within the framework of the NATO. The Spanish military effort alone to reinforce the defense of the allies in Eastern Europe against a possible Russian attack includes 1,700 soldiers, an unprecedented number until now.
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