The University of Almería brings together experts to debate the province's role in European defence
Topics Almería Diputación de Almería Universidad de Almería
The University of Almería has hosted a conference on security and defence in Europe in which the opportunities the province has in the new defence ecosystem were addressed. The event brought together institutional, military, academic and business representatives.
The University of Almería (UAL) held a conference this Monday on the new European security and defence architecture and the opportunities that are opening up for the province in this field. The meeting, entitled «Europa, Seguridad y Defensa: el papel de los territorios y la universidad en la nueva arquitectura europea», was organised by the UAL, the Provincial Council of Almería and the Defence Subdelegation.
An open forum for students
The third vice-president of the Provincial Council, Eugenio Gonzálvez, explained that the conference was created with an informative and academic purpose and that its aim is for Engineering and Economics students to learn first-hand about the security and defence challenges of the European Union and to be able to discuss them with institutional, business and citizen representatives. Gonzálvez encouraged young people to «listen, ask and participate».
The programme began with an official reception by the rector of the UAL, José J. Céspedes; Gonzálvez himself, and the general commanding the Legion Brigade, Juan Carlos Moreno. Afterwards, Colonel Pedro Sánchez Herráez, of the Institute of Strategic Studies, gave the keynote lecture «¡Un planeta en pugna y desorden! ¿Europa?».
The focus, on Almería
The central block was a round table on the opportunities for Almería within the European defence ecosystem. It was attended by Francisco Manuel Palomino Benítez, chief of staff of the Legion Brigade; José Antonio Piedra Fernández, senior lecturer at the UAL; José Miguel Escobar Castañeda, managing director of Berdea SAT; Diego Teruel Giménez, business director of the Tecnova Technology Centre, and Eugenio Marruecos Sola, engineer at Michelin.
During his speech, the rector argued that knowledge «must be transferred and turned into genuine technological innovation» and pointed to cooperation between agents as key to improving the positioning of Spanish industry in the defence sector. General Juan Carlos Moreno explained that the Legion's participation took the form of a lecture by Lieutenant Gómez Palomino on the capabilities required by the new Experimental Brigade.
What was discussed
According to the UAL, the conference served to address the role of the university and of the Almería territory in industrial and technological sovereignty, knowledge transfer, innovation and adaptation to the new EU defence policies. The meeting concluded with the drawing of conclusions aimed at boosting the technological and strategic projection of the province.
