The former ministers Jaime Mayor Oreja and Federico Trillo, responsible for Interior and Defense in the governments of José María Aznar, will meet this Monday in Madrid to examine the current situation of Ceuta after the "challenge" from Morocco, more than two and a half months after the massive entry of 80,000 irregular immigrants into the autonomous city.
The colloquium, organized by the Neos Forum under the title 'Ceuta, from weakness to awakening', will focus on "national sovereignty, border security, and the stability of the Strait," according to the information provided by the NEOS foundation, chaired by Mayor Oreja.
The meeting takes place amid controversy over the presence of Moroccan military vessels in waters near Ceuta coinciding with the massive influx of migrants at the end of July. The PP has demanded explanations from the government of Pedro Sánchez regarding these events known this same week and has referred them to the National Court, where the party is listed as a plaintiff in the case.
Alongside Mayor Oreja and Trillo, Manuel Contreras, retired brigadier general of the Civil Guard; Carlos Echevarría, professor of International Relations at UNED; and the Ceuta businesswoman Verónica Pareja will also participate. The table will be led by journalist Ramón Pérez-Maura.
In a note, NEOS has explained that with this forum it aims to promote an in-depth debate on "the challenges facing Spain in Ceuta and Melilla, the protection of national sovereignty, and the need to address security and coexistence issues with responsibility and a sense of state."
The "triangle of weakness" and the role of Ceuta
Mayor Oreja will place the situation of Ceuta within what he calls the "triangle of weakness" of Spain, which also includes the Basque Country, Navarra, and Catalonia. In his view, the evolution of Ceuta and Melilla "is part of the project" promoted by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez.
"We are not facing a coincidence. The project requires that the invaders remain in Ceuta to confirm the failure of Spain's national sovereignty. The logic of the process is undeniable: the weakness of Ceuta is an essential part of the national weakness project that Sánchez promotes," the former Interior minister has stated.
Subsequently, the speakers will address the Ceuta reality from different angles: General Manuel Contreras will focus on security in the Strait; Carlos Echeverría will examine the fragility of the Spanish geopolitical position derived, in his opinion, from the decisions of the Sánchez Government; and Verónica Pareja will present the daily experience of the city's inhabitants.
Trillo and the defense of national sovereignty
Trillo will orient his intervention towards the defense of national sovereignty. In an interview granted last September to Europa Press, the former Minister of Defense stated that the Executive should have declared a state of emergency in Ceuta, considering that it would have allowed for the expulsion of "all illegal invaders, whether or not they are minors."
In that same conversation, he also defended the need to bring Morocco before international forums, whether before the United Nations or before European judicial instances, because "someone has to answer" for the dozens of deaths associated with the massive entry of migrants at the end of July.
Furthermore, Trillo then stated that Pedro Sánchez has shown a "Stockholm syndrome" by "telling the version of those who have him trapped." "Morocco has everything to do with what happened in the invasion," he affirmed in the aforementioned interview with Europa Press.