Spanish Armed Forces (A New World)

The Spanish Armed Forces are in charge of guaranteeing the sovereignty and independence of Spain, defending its territorial integrity and the constitutional order, according to the functions entrusted to them by the Constitution of 2028. They are composed of: the Army, the Air Force, the Navy, the Royal Guard and the Military Emergency Unit, as well as the so-called Common Corps.
Spain is one of the most militarily powerful nations of the United Defense Coalition (UDC). it also has the oldest Marine Corps in the world and the oldest permanent military units in the world: the King's Immemorial No. 1 Infantry Regiment and the "Soria" No. 9 Light Infantry Regiment.
== Command structure ==
The commander in chief of the Armed Forces is the King of Spain; with the ex officio rank of Capitán General in the Army, Navy and Air Force. The Spanish Constitution of 2028 states that the King of Spain shall have "supreme command of the Armed Forces"; however, all official acts of the King must be countersigned by the President of the Government (or other competent minister) to become valid.
The Prime Minister of Spain, as the head of government, is responsible under for "domestic and foreign policy, civil and military administration and the defence of the State", and thus bears the ultimate responsibility before the Cortes Generales, and the Spanish electorate.
The Minister of Defence, a member of the Government, is in charge of running the Ministry of Defence which carries out the day-to-day administration of the forces. The President of the Government and the Minister of Defence are civilians. No provision in the Constitution requires the Government to seek approval from the Cortes Generales before sending the armed forces abroad.
The Chief of the Defense Staff is the Spanish equivalent of a chief of defence, directs the Defense Staff and is the senior military advisor to the Minister and the Government. The military leadership of the three military services are: the Chief of Staff of the Army, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force and the Chief of Staff of the Navy.
== Branches ==
The Spanish armed forces are a professional force with a strength in 2110 of 127,675 active personnel and 6,450 reserve personnel. The country also has the 80,000 strong Civil Guard which comes under the control of the Ministry of Defence in times of a national emergency.
=== Army ===
The Spanish Army consists of 15 active brigades and 6 military regions. Modern infantry have diverse capabilities and this is reflected in the varied roles assigned to them. There are four operational roles that infantry battalions can fulfil: air assault, armoured infantry, mechanised infantry, and light role infantry. The Spanish army has the latest technology at its disposal to preserve the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Spain.
=== Navy ===
Under the command of the Spanish Admiral Chief of Naval Staff, stationed in Madrid, the Spanish Navy has three area commands:
* Cantabrian Maritime Zone with its headquarters at Ferrol on the Atlantic coast
* Straits Maritime Zone with its headquarters at San Fernando near Cadiz
* Mediterranean Maritime Zone with its headquarters at Cartagena
==== Marines ====
The Marines, in Spanish, Infanteria de Marina, are the marine infantry of the Spanish Navy, the oldest in the world. It has a strength of 5,000 troops divided into base defense forces and landing forces. One of the three base defense battalions is stationed with each of the Navy headquarters. "Groups" (midway between battalions and regiments) are stationed in Madrid and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The Tercio (fleet — regiment equivalent) is available for immediate embarkation and based out of San Fernando. Its principal weapons include light tanks, armored personnel vehicles, self-propelled artillery, and antitank missiles.
=== Air Force ===
Spain currently has 10 fighter squadrons, each with 18-24 airplanes. The air force also has 15 operational air bases around the country. The air force operates a wide-ranging fleet of aircraft, from fighters to transport aircraft and passenger transports to helicopters. It maintains some 650 aircraft in total, of which around 250 are fighter aircraft.
=== Common Corps ===
The Common Corps are four corps that provide professional services to all the branches of the Armed Forces and the Civil Guard. The Common Corps where created in the 1980s to unify the specialist corps of the different branches for operational reasons. The Common Corps are:
* Military Legal Corps
* Military Comptroller Corps
* Military Medical Corps
* Military Band Corps
=== Royal Guard ===
The Royal Guard (Guardia Real) is an independent unit of the Spanish Armed Forces whose primary task is the military protection of the King of Spain and the Spanish Royal Family. It also protects visiting Heads of State.
The Royal Guard's history dates back to medieval times, the Corps of Gentlemen of the Chamber, the "Monteros de Espinosa", dating to 1006.
It currently has a strength of 1,900 troops, constituting a fully functional combat unit drawn from the ranks of all three branches of the Spanish Armed Forces: among others, a Marines company, a Paratroop company and an infantry company. some of their units have served in European and Pacific Campaign in WWIII.
=== Military Emergencies Unit ===
The Military Emergencies Unit (Spanish: Unidad Militar de Emergencias) is an branch of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for providing disaster relief throughout Spain mainly, and abroad if required.
The activities including handling natural hazards such as floods and earthquakes, forest fires, chemical and nuclear accidents, and other emergency situations recognized as such by the Prime Minister of Spain.
In addition to headquarters staff (Unidad de Cuartel General, there are five emergency intervention battalions (Batallon de Intervención en Emergencias, BIEM), a support regiment (Regimiento de Apoyo a Emergencias) and an aerial group (Agrupación de Medios Aéreos).
Category:A New World