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The United States has two military bases in Spain and both are in Andalusia: the Morón de la Frontera air base, in Seville, and the Rota naval base, in Cádiz. Both being of vital importance for NATO’s defensive strategy, the one from Cadiz has recovered even greater value during the week that the Alliance meets in Madrid.
Because on the opening day of the meeting in Madrid, the US president, Joe Biden, together with his Spanish counterpart, Pedro Sánchez, have agreed to increase the number of destroyers that the Rota site will house from four to six.
This morning I met with President @Sanchezcastejon and thanked him for hosting the NATO Summit and for Spain’s 40 years of contributions to Transatlantic security.
Together, we launched a joint declaration reaffirming our close partnership on addressing global challenges. pic.twitter.com/OCRbAPnhFI
— President Biden (@POTUS) June 29, 2022
The USS Carney, the USS Donald Cook, the USS Porter and the USS Ross are currently located there, integrated into the NATO anti-missile shield program in which Rota began to participate in 2013 after the Lisbon Summit.
If the Congress of Deputies approves it, the new US warships will arrive in 2024 and 2026. With this agreement already signed, 600 new US troops will arrive in the Andalusian town in the coming years.
[Qué países integran la OTAN]
Built in 1955, the Rota naval base is a strategic point of vital importance for the United States, since its geographical location allows it to be the gateway to Europe from the Atlantic and the closest connection with North Africa.
The site covers 6,100 acres (about 2,500 hectares) and is located between the municipalities of Chipiona and Puerto de Santa María. It is estimated that it hosts about 8,000 peoplebetween military and civilian personnel.
As a good military base, it houses a port and airport, with their respective storage warehouses.
But leaving aside the defensive section, the Rota base is the closest thing to a city. He lacks nothing. It has a residential area for soldiers and their families, restaurants, supermarkets with duty-free products, cinemas, a bowling alley, a golf course, a gym, a swimming pool and even a private beach.
It also has colleges and university centers, places of religious worship and a hospital.
Incredible as it may seem, since its creation no US president has visited it, with the exception of Barack Obama. Although it was a short trip, the arrival of the American leader was a milestone in the history of the site, where he left a phrase that still remains in memory: “If Americans have to be outside their country, the best place to live is Broken”.
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism