The Commander of the Joint Cyberspace Command analyses the role of the combat cloud and the human factor in the defence of cyberspace

• Vice-Admiral Roca took part in the round-table discussion ‘The secure use of the cloud in critical environments’, organised by Amazon Web Services

The commander of the Joint Cyber Command (MCCE), Vice-Admiral Javier Roca, took part in the round-table discussion ‘The secure use of the cloud in critical environments’, organised in Madrid by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to address operational resilience and strategic autonomy in the face of cyber threats.

In his speech, he referred to the combat cloud as the engine of interoperability for connecting the Armed Forces at three levels: the strategic level (using AI for data management), the tactical level (to streamline the decision-making cycle in combat) and the logistical level (through automation). He also pointed out that, to harness this full potential, one must not rely on a single technology, but rather invest in the ecosystem as a whole. To this end, he advocated leveraging the hyperscale capacity of the cloud and fostering a key shift in mindset, having emphasised that the main barriers to change are cultural, as the technology is already ready for such a change.

Vice-Admiral Roca also emphasised that, in the field of defence, preparations are focused on ‘D-Day’, when the cloud and communications will be the first targets the enemy will attempt to take down. To address this challenge, he advocated for organisational changes centred on experimentation and warned that if exercises always go smoothly, they are of little use, as one always learns from mistakes. Similarly, he prioritised the human factor in digital transformation and concluded that it is necessary to invest more in people than even in the technology itself.

The panel discussion organised by AWS took place against a geopolitical backdrop in which strategic autonomy and digital sovereignty are priorities for Spain and its European allies. In this context, the cloud is establishing itself as a key tool for ensuring the operational continuity of the Armed Forces and enabling a rapid response in cyberspace.

The event also provided an opportunity to review the National Cryptology Centre’s security regulations and analyse lessons learnt from high-pressure missions, in line with NATO standards.