Immigration and Spanish-Moroccan cooperation in maritime search and rescue: prospects for SAR cooperation in the Strait of Gibraltar region

Abstract

The area of the Strait of Gibraltar, understood as Europe's southern border, is an undeniably strategic location where various actors converge, and where migration and security issues play an essential role in the interests of neighbouring states. Following a recent increase in migratory flows on the Western Mediterranean route, Spain has witnessed the need to strengthen its cooperation with third states, such as Morocco, in search of greater control and strengthening of its external maritime borders. In other areas of cooperation, such as maritime rescue, this collaboration is crucial to guarantee the safety of human life at sea, although it has developed in an informal and unstable manner. Recent investments by the EU and Spain have prompted a greater response from Moroccan rescue services in their areas of responsibility. However, this support, mainly focused on increasing surveillance in the region, seems insufficient as it depends on volatile diplomatic relations influenced by the interests of both neighbours. To provide an updated view of how search and rescue operations are executed in the Strait Area, this study analyses the implications that the peculiar relations between Spain and Morocco may have on the achievement of maritime rescue cooperation in the region. In particular, it analyses cooperation in the areas of shared responsibility between Spain and Morocco, while questioning the future prospects for such cooperation.