Mallorca wildfire air base: Spain seeks EU backing

Mallorca could host aircraft fighting wildfires across the western Mediterranean: Spain’s interior minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, is asking the European Commission to back a regional air base on the island. He put the plan to European Union crisis management commissioner Hadja Lahbib in Brussels on Wednesday, 14 October, the Spanish Interior Ministry said. It also calls for a centre of expertise on Mallorca.

Nine countries show interest

Spain says its firefighting experience and location would allow the base to support operations in the western Mediterranean and the Atlantic. All nine countries in the Mediterranean group MED-9 expressed interest in the proposed air hub at a meeting in Split, Croatia, on 7 October.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez first sent the proposal to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen in July. She welcomed it in October, but did not say what the EU would contribute.

Funding remains unresolved

Grande-Marlaska now wants to work out the technical and financial details with the Commission, including how the Mallorca base might fit into the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism and a future European firefighting fleet. He also wants to explore funding options without cutting budgets for civil protection emergencies. For now, the base remains a proposal.

Topics: Missing & rescue

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com