LXV Iberian Peninsula Military Staff Talks

• Spain and Portugal held the LXV Iberian Peninsula Military Staff Talk in Lisbon from 15 to 17 November

Chief of Joint Staff (JEMACON), Lieutenant General Fernando García González-Valerio, co-chaired the LXV Iberian Peninsula Military Staff Talks, held in Lisbon from 15 to 17 November.

These meetings are established within the framework of the Spanish-Portuguese Security and Defence Council with the aim of promoting and strengthening military cooperation between the Armed Forces of both countries. The meetings have been held since 1954, showing the high level of understanding and trust existing between both Armed Forces.

The meeting included various joint and specific working subgroups of the armies and navies, which analysed the degree of achievement of the bilateral activities agreed at the previous meeting and agreed on the activities for the 2022-2023 cycle, which are distributed among different areas: exchanges for personnel training, joint training activities, mutual logistical support, exchange of information in areas such as leadership or lessons learned, and collaboration in operations.

Analyses were also shared on the evolution of the international security and defence organisations (NATO and EU) to which both countries belong and in which they cooperate bilaterally on a regular basis in matters such as, the joint generation of Battlegroups and the EU Coordinated Maritime Presence project or Operation ATALANTA.

In addition, the Multiannual Bilateral Cooperation Plan was signed between the two countries, a tool that will allow optimising the efficiency and monitoring of the agreed bilateral activities, as well as assessing the degree of achievement reached.