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A woman is playing with her dog, and a swimmer jumps into the Atlantic while the sun slowly sinks on a Spanish beach. A pair of massive US warships intrudes on the tranquil scene.
The five destroyers, each weighing 9,000 tonnes, are based at Rota. Once a small farming village in the middle of nowhere, Rota is now home to the largest US naval base in Europe. These vessels can detect and destroy enemy ballistic missiles. They are the backbone of an American shield designed to protect Europe.
All bets have been removed with Donald Trump at the White House. His insistence that Europe stop decades of “freeloading”, and start defending herself, has sparked fears that Washington may be about to reduce its epoch defining military presence.
At least 38 European bases house almost 84,000 US servicemen, some dating back to World War II. The Rota base was created in 1953 as a result of a pact signed by then-US President Dwight Eisenhower with Spanish dictator Francisco Franco.
The Pentagon describes it as “the largest fuel and weapons facilities in Europe”. According to the Pentagon guide for new personnel, the location is crucial to “projecting military strength into the Mediterranean region, North Africa, and the Middle East”.
James Bem, who is a New Yorker and co-founded a local pizza chain called Slice of New York, said that Rota has “one of most sought after jobs in the military rotation.” It’s like paradise.
Rota’s regional appeal and leisure opportunities will not guarantee its future. Local memories are less valuable, including rock ‘n’ roll that seeped out of the base past Franco’s fascist dictatorship censors.
In early this year, US defence secretary Pete Hegseth warned European allies the US protection “would not last forever”. US Secretary of state Marco Rubio, however, dismissed the reports this month of a possible decrease in US troops. He called them “hysteria”.
Jim Townsend said that anything could happen. There are many things that can set Trump off.
He said that possible triggers could include retaliation for Trump’s tariffs or European support for Ukraine. Or, they could be resistance to US President’s goal of gaining control over Greenland. “Trump could say: ‘Look, it’s me versus you guys now. Screw you. You defend yourself.'”
Rota could become even more vulnerable due to Spanish politics. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, one of the EU’s senior leftwing leaders, has repeatedly antagonised Trump on foreign policy issues.
Michael Walsh said, “These misalignments create a political risk for US”, and that it increased the chance of a downsizing Rota.
Sánchez’s friendliness towards China is a particular source of friction, with the premier calling on Washington and Beijing to “talk” about the tariff war during his visit to the Chinese capital last week. Spain is the only Nato member that spends less per capita on defence. A third is Sánchez’s criticism of Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
Rota is not a simple place to set up. The facility is officially “used jointly” (by both the Spanish and Americans) by the Americans. Washington therefore needs Madrid’s approval for certain activities.
The base that hosts 2,800 US soldiers, including those at sea at the moment, shows how far Europe still is from being able protect itself.
Nato may claim ownership of the missile shield, but in reality it is a US-made product. Theoretically, other Nato members can take over the eastern flank of Nato, which includes two lightly manned US launchers in Poland and Romania. The warships that Barack Obama’s government began moving to Rota, in 2014, is another issue. They provide a mobile shield initially intended to protect the continent from Iran — and no European navy has anything similar.
It is for this reason that Europe does not want to see the US leave and prefers to gradually assume more responsibility in terms of defence over next decade.
Javi Ruiz Arána, Rota’s Mayor, said that the town was shaken before by rumours of cuts. The base, however, is currently humming, and accounts for two-thirds or more of the local economy, according to Javi Ruiz Arana. Americans still drive their Chevrolets and Hummers along Rota’s narrow streets, and Navantia, a state-owned Spanish shipbuilder, has a seven-year €822mn maintenance contract For the destroyers
Ruiz said, “People have the impression that the base is growing.” There’s an investment, the hangars are being expanded, and there’s also a port expansion project.
Americans in Rota were hoping to weather the uncertainty. Everyone has an opinion,” said a service member walking their dog along the seafront. A Midwest military spouse said that they thought the US would have a lower security bill in Europe.
A rumoured option is the withdrawal of thousands of troops that Biden sent to strengthen Nato’s Eastern flank in 2022.
Raymond Spicer (chief executive of the US Naval Institute) and retired rear admiral, Raymond Spicer, has said that as the US focuses more on China, the demand for personnel is increasing. He said that the pivot to western Pacific was a major factor.
Even if the US reduces its presence in Europe it will need to protect whatever remains. The destroyers and marines stationed at Rota will have to be ready to respond in the event of an attack against a US base or embassy.
The Ministry of Defence in Spain said: [US-Spain] Trump’s arrival did not change anything about Rota. The Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo said this week that the US-Spain relationship was in “one their best moments”.
Walsh said that a non-European nation could offer the US an equally good site on the other side the Mediterranean. This is Morocco, which rumours have it, has offered Rota alternatives before. By normalising ties to Israel, the kingdom cemented its position as a Trump ally in 2020.
According to Walsh, a senior fellow with the Foreign Policy Research Institute, the Trump administration would consider it a much lower risk than locating US military bases on the Moroccan coast.
If Sánchez overestimated how much the US needed Rota, the chances of a Trump shock were especially high, he warned. “They could overplay the game and make things worse if they do.”
Carmen Muela, Madrid: Additional reporting; Ian Bott, cartography
