Telefónica chairman Marc Murtra urges Europe and Catalonia to invest in defense and sovereign tech

Call for strategic autonomy

Telefónica Executive Chairman Marc Murtra addressed business leaders at the Foment del Treball employer federation in Barcelona on 4 September 2026, arguing that Europe, Spain, and Catalonia must build an independent defense industry without hesitation. Murtra described European reliance on foreign critical technology as dangerous, stating that dependency on external powers such as the United States and China leaves democratic societies vulnerable. He cited an August 2026 hybrid attack involving explosive-laden drones discovered outside Leipzig Airport in Germany as direct evidence of European vulnerability. Murtra stated that democratic nations face foreign aggression and must place security capability above welfare and wealth creation.

It is extraordinarily dangerous for Europe, and here I include Catalonia and Spain, to depend on critical technologies that are not European, because we are seeing that this generates extraordinary fragility.

Sovereign space and computing infrastructure

Murtra stated that autonomous infrastructure must extend across critical software, data architectures, and space communications. He urged the European Union to build a sovereign satellite constellation rather than relying on commercial providers, noting that Starlink owner Elon Musk held unilateral power to grant or restrict satellite access during the war in Ukraine. Beyond space communications, Murtra called for European development of social media algorithm oversight, proprietary artificial intelligence software, quantum computing, and search engines. Murtra noted that European technology creation will be slow, complex, and expensive, but welcomed recent European Union regulatory adjustments designed to let companies form cross-border partnerships and build scale.

Industrial mobilisation in Catalonia

Addressing attendees at the employer federation headquarters, Foment del Treball President Josep Sánchez Llibre stated that the region had previously neglected the sector. Sánchez Llibre, leading an organization marking its 250th anniversary in 2026, called for dual-use technology investments to remain within Catalonia and urged local firms to compete for defense contracts. The audience included Banc Sabadell President Josep Oliu, Grifols Vice Chairman Raimon Grífols Roura, Glovo co-founder Sacha Michaud, and La Vanguardia publisher Javier Godó, alongside former regional government ministers Felip Puig, Carles Mundó, and former party spokesperson Elsa Artadi.

Catalonia, which has lived with its back to the defense industry, can have opportunities.

Telefónica operations and sector integration

Murtra, who chaired Spanish defense contractor Indra until 2025 before assuming the leadership of Telefónica, explained that telecommunications operators can support defense systems by managing communications and military drone controls. He noted that satellite links serve as complements to terrestrial towers in remote areas like the Monegros or rural Brazil, rather than dense urban centers. Murtra linked technological development to early telecommunications tests, recalling that Spain's first telephone trial took place in Barcelona in December 1877 at the industrial engineering school. Telefónica currently employs 1,043 people in Catalonia, maintains 6.5 million access points, and produced four film and series projects in the region over the past year through its Movistar Plus division.