COVID-19, special on Spanish National Security

Statement

The
situation created by the rise of the virus COVID-19 in Spain and the subsequent
declaration of the State of Alarm
throughout our country deserves to be carefully analyzed due to its evident
repercussions for national security. In addition to the consequences that this
is having for the citizens’ health, which is ultimately the main objective of
all security and defense policies, the spread of the coronavirus is demanding
the adoption of decisions that affect public rights and freedoms, the financial
system or strategic sectors such as food supply and transportation. It is the
first time in recent history that such a major disruption of economic and
social life has occurred and, therefore, it is worth reflecting and taking note
of everything that can help us to react better in the future.

In
the first place, the coronavirus outbreak should serve to make us aware of the
extreme vulnerability of our
societies. We often think that modernity has managed to solve all problems,
that technology has made us almost invincible. Yet the reality is that the
enormous complexity of our lifestyle has multiplied the risk factors. A virus
of moderate danger that emerged in China has been enough to paralyze entire
countries located thousand kilometers away in a few months.

The
next step should be a personal change of
attitude from a whole society approach. We have to be aware of the
inevitability of certain events that affect our lives and thus reasonably
prepare ourselves for when they occur. We must also avoid waiting for the
authorities´ instructions to take the safety measures that we could take right
away. Above all, we can not let ourselves be carried away by fear. We must
assess carefully if our situation is grave enough to ask for help or if, on the
contrary, we are able to deal with it on our own and help prevent the collapse
of the public services.

This
change in our individual attitude must be accompanied by an improvement of the
readiness of the Government and Public Administrations. Spain has equipped
itself with a National Security Strategy
and has the means and resources to deal with situations like the one we are
suffering. All this has been possible over the years thanks to the effort of
the Armed Forces, the State Security Forces and the different Public Administrations,
in addition to the close cooperation with universities, research centers and
the private sector. Unfortunately, all this work has not been well supported
neither politically or on the budget-level since the security issues have not
been considered a priority. We hope that this crisis will be useful to increase
our leaders’ interest in them and to start dedicating the resources they need
to national security.

It
seems particularly serious to us that the process of political decision is conditioned – even in such a current serious
situation- by party interests or electoral calculations. Speed ??in
decision-making and unity of action are crucial in moments like this because
only then can an effective strategy that distributes available resources efficiently
be developed. The fact that an effective and fast solution could be jeopardized
by the division in the decision areas and even by the disloyalty of the
officials in charge of ensuring the correct application of the measures adopted
is unacceptable.

Finally,
we hope that this crisis becomes an opportunity for solidarity. Solidarity between European countries, which must share
knowledge, experiences, human and material resources. Solidarity between the
different Spanish regions, which have to forget administrative borders and
competence issues to make themselves available to the Government without
hindrance. Lastly, solidarity between Spaniards, who must do their best to help
their neighbors and, be aware at all times of the consequences that their
actions may have on others. This is the only way to overcome the serious
situation caused by COVID-19 and prepare for those that may come in the future.