The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, has announced that at the NATO summit that will take place next week in Washington, and in which it will celebrate its 75th anniversary, The Atlantic organisation “will approve an action plan for the southern flank”.

In an interview in ‘La Vanguardia’, Albares confirmed that at the NATO summit, “An action plan will be approved for the southern flank, something that directly affects us because it has to do with security in the entire Sahel region and Africa”“The Sahel had a time when democracy began to spread, but now we have entered a phase of military juntas and civil wars, such as the one in Sudan, the biggest humanitarian catastrophe on the planet at the moment,” warns the minister about the crises and instability in this part of Africa.

“The Sahel is very fragile, an area where achieving food security is very difficult. We are talking about desert areas, with enormous challenges,” which has led the West to “triple cooperation in the area” and to make “a regional commitment” to the countries of the CDAO, the Economic Community of West African States.

Asked about the management of immigration from these countries, Albares warns that “as long as the gap between Africa and Europe remains what it is and Spain’s border with Africa is the most unequal on the planet, migratory movements will continue to occur”“And in addition to this, Europe, and Spain too, will need a large amount of labour to maintain our economic system. In this context, migratory movements do not have a solution. They must be managed,” concludes Albares.

He therefore insists: “Zero migration is impossible as long as this inequality exists and Africa is not developing. This must be clearly stated to the citizens. Anyone who says that they can do it and that there are formulas is lying. Neither walls, nor detention centres in third countries, nor mass expulsions will achieve this. The model that Spain is applying is effective.”

The minister reproaches the PP for its criticism of the relations between the Spanish Government and the Moroccan regime, which he considers “proof that Mr. Feijóo is absolutely unfit to govern Spain.” “There is a kind of ironclad law of foreign policy, and that is that one must have excellent relations with those countries with which one has a land border, as is the case with Morocco. And that is what happens here. Morocco is vital for the economy and for our security,” warns Albares.

“But the Popular Party, since Mr. Feijóo has been at the head of that party, has been sliding very dangerously towards positions that directly clash with the vital interests of Spain,” he concluded.