Madrid (EFE) .- The President of the government, Pedro Sánchez, has expressed concern about the technological dependence of the Armed and Security Forces with countries such as Israel and has trusted that the defense plan, which provides an investment of 10,471 million euros, contributes to ending that link.
This was stated on Wednesday in the Plenary Session of Congress, where he has appeared to explain this plan, and, in response to the groups, he reiterated that Spain has fulfilled its commitment not to sell or buy weapons from Israel since October 7, 2023, beginning of Israel’s invasion to Gaza.
Allusions to add
Sanchez has lamented that there are parliamentary groups, in reference to add, that criticize the increase in the budget in security and defense technology and, at the same time, also the technological dependence on certain countries.
In this sense, it has specified that some vehicles and ships incorporate systems and components whose operability depends on the maintenance and technology provided by Israel companies.
“And this is a worrying reality that obviously cannot be perpetuated,” said Sánchez, who highlighted the importance of the security and defense plan being focused on developing industrial capacities on Spanish soil that allow ending that technological dependence “of countries that have radically and drastically changed their foreign policy, either on the other side of the Atlantic or in the Middle East.”
On contracts
Sánchez has taken advantage of his intervention to clarify “half truths” and “insinuations” that have contaminated the public debate with respect to the contracts of Spain with Israel, and has assured that all of them are acquisitions that do not imply an armament of ammunition such as, for example, lighting elements for helmets of the Civil Guard or antibala vests.
These are also “absolutely essential” components for the operation and safety of equipment of the armed forces, such as antibombic frequency inhibitors or explosive scanners, whose function is to protect Spaniards or the military deployed in peace missions, he said.
-A third block, Sánchez said, are contracts awarded to companies with headquarters and production in Spain, on which current regulations prevents adopting these restrictive measures.
The only exception, as he recalled, was a tender of the Civil Guard initiated before the invasion of Gaza, which was subsequently awarded to an Israeli company, an “unfortunate error” that was remedied by terminating the contract.
Sánchez has also considered imprecise the data that the Center Delàs has made on Wednesday, according to which Spain has carried out 134 operations of arms sales with Israel since October 7, 2023, 46 contracts awarded to Israeli Industries and 88 shipments to Israel from Spain of weapons and ammunition material.
According to the president, they are temporary exports to repair equipment from the Armed Forces that cannot be carried out in Spain and, therefore, are pieces that are not used by the Israeli army or the state of Israel.
The reproaches of the PP
In response to the popular leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has highlighted that the PP reaches the absurd to reproach the government that fulfills the commitment to reach 2 % of GDP in Investment in Defense when it was a government of this party that sealed that agreement in 2014.
He has also referred to the “different perspectives” that he maintains with his government partners on how to deter and protect our country and Europe, but stressed that “there are the results of our management.”
To the ERC spokesman, Gabriel Rufián, who has ironic about the coincidence of the presentation of the plan with the death of Pope Francis, the chief of the Executive has told him that “he had not planned to die” the Pontiff and that he already planned to make it public for the deadlines established by the European Union.
