page_title: Spain
section_title: Military
hierarchical_section_title: Spain / Politics / Military
caption_attribution_description: A port bow view of the Spanish Navy, F 100 Class Frigate, ALMIRANTE JUAN DE BORBON (F 102) underway in the Pacific Ocean during Combat Systems Ship Qualifications Trails on the Pacific Missile Test Center Range off the coast of California (CA).
context_page_description: Spain, officially the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southwestern Europe with some pockets of territory across the Strait of Gibraltar and the Atlantic Ocean. Its continental European territory is situated on the Iberian Peninsula. Its territory also includes two archipelagos: the Canary Islands off the coast of North Africa, and the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. The African enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, and Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera, makes Spain the only European country to have a physical border with an African country. Several small islands in the Alboran Sea are also part of Spanish territory. The country's mainland is bordered to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea except for a small land boundary with Gibraltar; to the north and northeast by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay; and to the west and northwest by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean respectively.
  With an area of 505,990 km², Spain is the largest country in Southern Europe, the second-largest country in Western Europe and the European Union, and the fourth-largest country by area on the European continent.
context_section_description: The armed forces of Spain are known as the Spanish Armed Forces (Fuerzas Armadas Españolas). Their Commander-in-chief is the King of Spain, Felipe VI. The next military authorities in line are the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defence. The fourth military authority of the State is the Chief of the Defence Staff (JEMAD). The Defence Staff (Estado Mayor de la Defensa) assists the JEMAD as auxiliary body.
  The Spanish Armed Forces are divided into three branches:
  Army (Ejército de Tierra)
  Navy (Armada)
  Air Force (Ejército del Aire)
  Military conscription was suppressed in 2001.
caption: Almirante Juan de Borbón (F-102), a Spanish navy's F100 class frigate incorporating the Aegis Combat System.
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