ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an introduction to the changes that have taken place in Spain’s security policy since the death of Franco. This is by no means an easy task, largely because of the controversy that surrounded Spain’s entry into NATO. This decision aroused passions not only within the political élite, but also in the academic sphere and among the public at large. As a result, essentially political arguments have tended to dominate academic discussion of the issues. This chapter was written when the political debate was over, with the aim of making a contribution to a better understanding of the long and difficult process which, amid great passions, changed Spain’s security policy.
