In the past few days, we’ve witnessed the unsettling images of tens of thousands of Moroccans, young unemployed Muslim men, clambering over the barbed-wire fence border between Morocco and Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta.
The images conjure up several ironies of Spanish history — a reverse “Reconquista” of Spain whereby Muslims avenge the final expulsion by Christian armies of the Moorish rulers of Granada in 1492.
General Francisco Franco, the Spanish dictator and commander of the Army of Africa, would be turning over in his grave to learn the impoverished descendants of his elite Moroccan shock troops, those who conquered the Spanish mainland during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39), were invading the country once more — this time unarmed while seeking employment and a better life.
However, the situation is not as simple as porous borders or another wave of Muslim migrants flooding the European zone. In fact, the nuances have hardly been mentioned.
Morocco faces severe economic hardship, with many young Moroccans seeing little to no future in their country. Spain, the nearest European nation, is undergoing an economic boom and growing faster than any other country in Europe. It boasts a steadily falling unemployment rate, universal healthcare, school enrollment, and a guaranteed minimum income. To young Moroccans, the prospects for a better life in Spain are tantalizing.
However, Spain’s foreign policy seems to lack any strategic objectives. It does not carry any clout in Europe, defaults to a pro-Hamas, anti-Israel and anti-United States stance, and seems oblivious to the possibility Morocco might covet and one day seize the Spanish cities of Ceuta and Melilla. With its slow reaction to contain the crisis, Spain and its dysfunctional coalition government have signaled to its North African neighbors that the sovereignty of the Spanish territories may no longer be sacrosanct.
Behind the scenes, relations between Spain and Morocco have been strained. The Moroccan government is concerned about Spain’s increasingly close ties to Algeria, Morocco’s neighbor and competitor for oil and gas. Algeria has recently been cozying up to Spain, offering future gas supplies, which has alarmed Morocco.
Was this invasion, in fact, a trial balloon launched by the Moroccan government to test Spain’s will to respond? The Moroccan government is accused of playing a significant role in the recent migrant crisis by convincing young Moroccans they would be granted Spanish citizenship after crossing into Spain. The flight of such a young, dissatisfied population relieves the economic pressure in that country and ultimately avoids unrest. It’s no secret that the Moroccan government had knowledge of and may have organized and facilitated the transport of some 60,000 young Moroccan men on chartered buses going from Morocco to Ceuta. Unfortunately, for Spain and Morocco, the crisis has caused dozens of fatalities. Spain has returned approximately 60,000 of these migrants, putting pressure back on Morocco’s high youth unemployment and causing social friction.
How have recent events affected the relationship between the U.S., Spain, and Morocco? The Spanish “Left” has pointed to American meddling and strong-arm tactics to increase Spain’s contribution to NATO and to support the war against Iran. Spain has refused to cooperate along those lines, which has only increased the enmity between President Donald Trump and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. Spain’s leftists are also concerned not only about Morocco’s government naming its new Saharan highway after Trump but also the strong strategic alliance between Morocco and the U.S., which includes joint military exercises.
SPAIN FORFEITED ITS BORDERS. TRUMP SHOULD HAND CEUTA TO MOROCCO
To many on the Spanish “Left,” the alleged Spanish far-right protests of the current Spanish government and prime minister are nothing more than a conspiracy that the Trump administration is amplifying.
Spain and Morocco are now facing a tense diplomatic and security path going forward. The two nations will no doubt be compelled to manage border stabilization, humanitarian processing, and high-level European Union talks. That might be a tall order for neighbors at loggerheads.
Ken Strange is a former FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force agent, DOJ special agent in charge, and author of the award-winning true crime memoir A Cop’s Son: One G-Man’s Fight Against Jihad, Global Fraud, and the Cartels.