According to the Spanish Constitution, the armed forces are the "principal guarantors of constitutional order". That was what defence minister Margarita Robles decided to highlight this Sunday during the annual Pasqua Militar parade. At Madrid's Royal Palace, the minister focused her speech on the 40th anniversary of the Constitution, celebrated last December, defending the text as being fully in force.
Speaking before king Felipe VI, she defended the "framework of social harmony" of the 1978 Constitution, which "everyone can fit in" as long as they respect the law. She described defence policy as a matter of state "aimed at promoting stability, progress and peace".
Like the Spanish monarch, Robles avoided any direct reference to the Catalan crisis in her speech. She did, however, call for the "armed forces and Civil Guard to keep their distance from partisan or situational decisions". She emphasised the importance of Spain's military participation in NATO, but also in the EU. The minister also supported "consolidating the leadership which corresponds to us in Europe" on an international stage where the actors "have changed".
The Pascua Militar, which marks the beginning of the military year, is a ceremony instated by king Charles III (reigned 1759–1788) after Spanish troops recovered the Menorcan town of Maó from British hands on 6th January 1782. This year's ceremony was again marked by the absence of former monarchs Juan Carlos I and Sofía. Juan Carlos has only attended once, in 2018, since his abdication. The ceremony is an opportunity to evaluate the previous year and to set the objectives for the new one.