The Minister for Defence, Margarita Robles, has travelled to Portugal to attend the Ministerial Meeting of the 5+5 Defence Initiative, a meeting that has served to close the Portuguese presidency and give way to the Spanish presidency of this Initiative for 2024.
The minister, accompanied by the Secretary General for Defence Policy, Admiral Juan Francisco Martínez Núñez, highlighted the successes of the Portuguese presidency that is now coming to an end, and highlighted the results achieved by this unique tool that serves as a bridge between countries and which, through dialogue, respect and equality, reinforces stability and the building of trust between neighbours and friends.
Minister Robles pointed out that compared to other nearby regions experiencing terrible situations, the Western Mediterranean is today a privileged scenario in terms of peace and stability, indicating that perhaps we should stop thinking on the basis of five plus five and instead consider that we are only ten shores of the same sea, with many points in common.
"Today we have agreed that we are not 5+5, but that we are 10 rivers that all go to the Mediterranean Sea, a sea of culture, history and tolerance," said Robles after the handover ceremony. Spain takes on the pending challenges by committing itself to dialogue "which is the key to resolving many conflicts, and to continuing to make progress in something as important as the search for peace", she stated.
Robles also expressed her condolences to Morocco and Libya for the natural disasters that have recently occurred in those countries, and stressed the need to confront this type of catastrophe with a spirit of solidarity, as demonstrated by Spain's provision of aid in both cases.
Finally, the Minister referred to the twelve activities that Spain will organise during its presidency, highlighting among them the holding of a major rescue exercise, led by the Air and Space Forces, and another on maritime security led by the Navy.
The 5+5 Defence Initiative was established in 2004 in the spirit of developing multilateral cooperation, promoting security in the Western Mediterranean and fostering mutual understanding.
Two decades after its launch, the Initiative is maintained, consolidated and expanded year after year, thanks to the continuous military cooperation activities organised by all participating nations in areas such as maritime security, air safety, search and rescue at sea, support to civilian authorities in disaster situations, gender perspective, training, research, special operations, cyber defence and humanitarian demining.
Non official translation
The Minister for Defence, Margarita Robles, attends the Ministerial Meeting of the 5+5 Defence Initiative