PEACEKEEPING MISSIONS AS A FUNCTION OF THE ARMED FORCES AND PUBLIC OPINION IN SPAIN; [МИРОТВОРЧЕСКИЕ МИССИИ КАК ФУНКЦИЯ ВООРУЖЕННЫХ СИЛ И ОБЩЕСТВЕННОЕ МНЕНИЕ В ИСПАНИИ]; [MISIONES DE PAZ COMO FUNCIÓN DE LAS FUERZAS ARMADAS Y LA OPINIÓN PÚBLICA EN ESPAÑA]

The article develops the approach that for the reason of the broad interpretation of the concept of security, understood as the interrelation of the internal security of the State with local, regional, and global processes, the doctrines on national security were corrected and the countries began to show a greater degree of commitment in terms of cooperation on these issues. The European region is the most prominent example to appreciate these trends, where integration at the economic level (European Coal and Steel Community) contributed to the development of political relations based on trust and, as a consequence, to military cooperation. As far as Spain is concerned, its Armed Forces Directives define the functions of the army as the defense of territorial integrity, constitutional order and participation in peacekeeping missions. In addition, the new professional activity of its armed forces – humanitarian operations – was used as an instrument to improve the image of the country abroad and to combat the “black legend”. However, today Madrid must maintain a balance between solidarity with allied countries and reputational costs when sending troops on a peace mission. In the case that intervention does not bring short-term positive results, the country’s prestige may be undermined. These approaches, together with factors such as the United Nations mandate to execute a peace operation, internal political unity, and (un) favorable public opinion, are present in the decisions of the Government of Spain to limit its presence in the expeditions, which are questionable from the international law point of view. © (2022), (Iberoamerica (Russian Federation)). All rights reserved.