In the 21st-century global economy, luxury tourism and foreign capital seek not only sun and connectivity; above all, they seek stability and security. In his address at the 2026 Military Easter Parade, Lieutenant General Julio Salom drew a direct link between the modernization of the Army in the archipelago and the protection of the Canary Islands' main economic engine. By safeguarding the airspace and sea against the instability of West Africa, the Armed Forces and the State Security Forces stand as the silent guardians of an ecosystem where legal certainty and environmental integrity are, now more than ever, one and the same.
The arrival of the Eurofighters from Plan Halcón and the upgrade of the radars in Gran Canaria and Lanzarote are not mere national defense upgrades; they are the infrastructure that guarantees that the one and a half million square kilometers of Spanish responsibility in the Atlantic will continue to be a safe transit area for commercial aviation and cruise ships.
The figure provided by Salom is revealing: almost one million traces detected in 2025. Each of these signals monitored by the Air Command represents the security of a tourist corridor connecting Europe with the archipelago. Without this technological deterrent, the perceived risk on Europe's southern border could erode the sector's competitiveness against other emerging destinations. For the Canary Islands Command, defense is the armor that protects the value of the "Canary Islands" brand.
The lieutenant general emphasized a critical aspect for the long-term viability of the islands: collaboration between the Armed Forces, the Military Emergency Unit (UME), and civilian institutions in environmental protection. In 2025, interventions in forest fires and climate emergencies demonstrated that protecting nature is not a secondary objective, but rather the core of safeguarding the islands' tourism assets.
A natural environment degraded by disasters or mismanagement loses its commercial value. Here, the role of the Civil Guard and the Military Emergency Unit (UME) is crucial. By ensuring the resilience of the territory against the risks of climate change, the State Security Forces act as crisis managers for a fragile economic asset. Security and the environment must go hand in hand because an unsafe destination does not attract visitors, but an environmentally devastated destination has nothing to offer.
The 60% decrease in irregular immigration on the Atlantic route is perhaps the greatest indirect success for the tourism industry. The work of the security forces and military cooperation in countries like Senegal and Mauritania not only fulfills a humanitarian and border control function; it also stabilizes the islands' image in tourist-generating markets, preventing the migration crisis from becoming a public safety crisis.
In this new year of 2026, the Canary Islands Command is not only projecting its strength towards West Africa to deter external threats; it is doing so to protect a way of life and an industry that sustains millions of people. As Salom rightly pointed out, the human factor remains the most valuable asset: soldiers and officers who, by patrolling the border and fighting fires, ensure that the Canary Islands continue to be, in the eyes of the world, the safe and prosperous sanctuary that international tourism demands.
