Just before Christmas an Iranian Brigadier General threatened the closure of the Mediterranean Sea at the Strait of Gibraltar. This came in response to US, UK and allied action to protect shipping in the Red Sea. It may have been bluster, who knows, but this has served to put the Strait under the military microscope.
FOCUS
With the focus on this area, Spain is starting to rearm its coastal military batteries nearby with more powerful and longer range weapons, as eyes turn towards hostile activity in this part of the world. In Gibraltar too the Ministry of Defence has already announced an increased investment in military facilities, and it is public knowledge that Morocco too has upped its own spending in this area.