This Tuesday, October 7, the Círculo Ecuestre hosted a conference organized by Las Tertulias del Ecuestre and the Tocqueville Club. General Miguel Ángel Ballesteros, former director of the Department of Homeland Security. The conference offered a comprehensive analysis of the contemporary global landscape from a geostrategic perspective. The session was presented by Tirso Gracia, member of the Círculo Ecuestre's Executive Committee, and featured David Carpio, professor of Criminal Law at the University of Barcelona, who joined the speaker in a discussion about the main challenges facing international security.
During his address, Ballesteros emphasized that the world is experiencing "a change of era rather than an era of change", highlighting the reconfiguration of the global balance and the shift of the power axis toward Asia. In this regard, he explained that "the United States and China are engaged in a strategic competition for global leadership", in which Europe must find "its own space of autonomy and political coherence."
The former director of the Department of Homeland Security also warned about the return of classical geopolitics and the growing importance of energy, technological, and territorial resources as instruments of power. “The war in Ukraine has brought us back to a situation we thought we had overcome. It has shown that European security cannot be taken for granted”, he noted.
Ballesteros also addressed the new areas of conflict arising from the technological revolution, artificial intelligence, and cyberspace, areas in which—he stated—“the line between peace and war has become blurred.” In his opinion, countries must prepare to manage hybrid threats that combine disinformation, cyberattacks, and economic pressure.
The general also dedicated part of his speech to reflecting on Spain's role on the international stage, highlighting the importance of European defense cooperation and the need to strengthen strategic alliances. “Spain is in a key geographical position, uniting Europe, Africa, and Latin America. This condition must be leveraged with strategic intelligence”, he stated.
In the subsequent discussion with David Carpio, Ballesteros emphasized the need to restore a culture of security among citizens and institutions. “Security is not just a military issue; it has a social, economic, and technological dimension that directly affects our daily lives”, he emphasized.
The conference concluded with a reflection on the challenges of the immediate future, in a context of global uncertainty and competition between powers. “We are facing a geostrategic transition that will define the coming decades. The key will be the ability to anticipate and international cooperation to address common threats”, Ballesteros concluded.