Potential Threats to Spanish Security: Implications for the United States and NATO
Abstract
Thirteen years ago, Spain held its first democratic elections since 1936. Prior to those elections, held in June 1977, Spain spent almost forty years under the dictatorship of Generalissimo Francisco Franco, who established an authoritarian regime in Spain following the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). Upon Franco's death in November 1975, Prince Juan Carlos de Borbon was crowned as King of Spain in accordance with Franco's 1957 announcement that the monarchy (abolished in 1931) would be restored after his death. Amidst problems ranging from inflation and unemployment to internal friction and, often opposition from rightist elements, King Juan Carlon eased the Spanish nation-state through the transition into a democracy and, undaunted by an attempted coup by military rightists in 1981, supported what might then have been considered a fragile democracy. The purpose of this study is to examine the security aspects of that experience. As such, it will address both internal security issues such as separatist movements, especially the Basque terrorist organization (ETA), and external security issues such as those posed by Gibraltar, Ceuta, Melilla, and, in spite of the tendency to dismiss it as irrelevant to Spanish security, the Soviet Union. This study will address how Spain's security posture can be expected to affect the United States and NATO, particularly as Spain finds a place within the context of a rapidly changing New Europe.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1990
- Accession Number
- ADA242517
Entities
People
- Tamara K. Adams
Organizations
- Naval Postgraduate School