Spanish Chief of Defence Meets with His Turkish Counterpart on his Official Visit to Spain

• Admiral Teodoro Esteban López Calderón has held a working meeting with General Metin Gürak

Official visit to Spain by the Turkish CHOD. He was received by the ESP CHOD, Admiral Teodoro E. López Calderón. The first event on the working agenda was a ceremony for the fallen at Madrid’s Plaza de la Lealtad, where both laid a wreath of laurel.

Afterwards, the Turkish delegation moved to Torrejón Air Base to visit the Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC), where they were received by Lieutenant General Juan Pablo Sánchez de Lara, Commander of this NATO Centre. At the CAOC Torrejón, around 200 personnel from 18 NATO countries, including Türkiye, work together. From here, they oversee and control NATO’s southern and eastern airspace, from the Azores to Turkey. General Metin Gürak had the opportunity to greet the Turkish personnel working at the CAOC.

Subsequently, the Turkish Chief of Staff travelled to the Defence Staff Headquarters, where he was received by the ESP CHOD. After their greeting and signing of the honorary guestbook, they held a working meeting, attended by several other senior officers, including the Chief of the Joint Staff, Lieutenant General Jose Antonio Herrera Llamas; the Chief of the Plans Division, Major General Pedro Torreño Suárez; and the Chief of the Strategy Division, Vice Admiral Saturnino Suanzes Fernández de Cañete.