The Spanish Armed Forces operate three batteries of the Patriot air defense system, totaling 18 launchers. The first battery was acquired from Germany in 2004, while the other two were purchased in 2014, also from Germany.
Of these three Spanish Patriot batteries, one is permanently stationed in Turkey on a rotational basis as part of NATO's mission to defend the country against aerial and ballistic threats, a mission that has been ongoing for 10 years. This fact clearly illustrates why NATO countries may express concerns about the objective shortage of air defense resources.
Specifically, the portal Army Recognition notes that Spain is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its participation in NATO's air defense mission in Turkey, codenamed Active Fence, during which the Spanish forces have conducted 21 rotations, involving a total of 3,000 military personnel.
Overall, the results of the Spanish air defense forces' operations during their 10-year presence in Turkey have not been made public. However, it is indicated that Spain is currently in the process of acquiring four Patriot batteries for €2.63 billion, with approval received in October 2023.
From Defense Express, we would like to emphasize a simple calculation – if, for instance, Spain maintains one of its batteries in Turkey, this means that for operations in Europe, the Spanish military can only deploy two of its batteries, roughly amounting to 12 launchers for the Patriot system.

It is particularly significant to note that all three of Spain's existing Patriot batteries were purchased from Germany, as this clearly illustrates how it came to be that during the "Cold War," the Bundeswehr had as many as 40 Patriot batteries, yet by the beginning of 2022, only 12 remained.
In general, this highlights why NATO countries are now able to discuss the objective shortage of air defense capabilities. However, it should be noted that Spain is among the countries that have actively supported strengthening Ukraine's air defense, particularly through direct supplies of Hawk systems, as well as training our air defense personnel on the Hawk and Patriot systems, and on NASAMS as well.
Earlier, in one of our publications, we also discussed how NATO countries defended Turkey against ballistic missiles and the outcomes of this, exemplified by the Active Fence operation.