The US has officially asked Spain if it can double its military force at Morón military base in Seville. Currently they base 500 marines and associated staff there. The request was slipped into Rajoy’s ear when he visited Washington last week, and came back so punch-drunk he forgot to mention it.
But a company called Vinnell-Brown & Root Spain (VBR) which maintains the base has asked the government not to permit the increase unless the US promises to employ more local workers.
The US has been cutting contractors at the base – in 2010 they employed 600 people, by the end of 2014 they expect to employ just 250 local workers. Instead, local workers have been substituted by US workers from abroad, or their positions eliminated.
The US maintains four military bases across Spain, with the first one opening in 1953.