Telefónica has established itself as one of the main references in 5G technology within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) after launching, together with the Ministry of Defense, the first European center dedicated to the development, training and testing for military operations in cyber defense with this technology.
This center, known as the 5G Cyber Defense Center, will be integrated into the NATO Digital Foundry later this monthan initiative promoted by the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA) to accelerate the adoption of disruptive technologies among the organization’s member countries.
He new space, located in Madrid, will protect communications between different assets of the Ministry of Defense. It analyzes 5G applications to connect drones, radars, weapons systems and even the soldier himself in the field, guaranteeing fast, stable and protected transmissions against cyber attacks. In addition to testing technological solutions, the center develops research and training activities for the Armed Forces and incorporates artificial intelligence tools capable of detecting and preventing digital threats in real time.
The Director of Defense and Security of Telefónica Spain, Javier López Gutiérrez, has indicated that in 2026 the company is consolidating the work started in 2022 to become a benchmark in 5G applied to Security and Defense, both in Spain and in the European Union and NATO. According to López, this development and testing center aimed at an international organization such as the Atlantic Alliance allows The Armies and Navy promote not only hyperconnectivity, but also other cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, edge computing or quantum computing.
Telefónica has completed the deployment of 5G tactical bubbles in all environments where the Armed Forces operate – air, sea, land and cyberspace -, demonstrating the advantages of this connectivity in complex scenarios. Recently, the first aerial 5G bubble in Spain was incorporated into a military aircraft at the Albacete air basewhich gave rise to the first onboard aerial 5G system for the Air and Space Army. This project was developed within the framework of the BACSI (Connected, Sustainable and Intelligent Air Base) program, aimed at modernizing aerodromes with technologies that improve their efficiency and sustainability.
During the tests VoNR radio calls were made (Voice Over New Radio) and secure video calls, including a real-time video transmission between two aircraft that participated in the exercise, guaranteeing interoperability between systems.
This progress adds to the pilot carried out at the end of 2025 in a real mission of a ship of the Permanent Naval Forces of the Alliance under NATO Maritime Commandwhere an onboard 5G node was deployed for four months to connect the vessel with the rest of the group, including unmanned units, through secure, low-latency communications without depending on public or satellite networks.
The company has also applied 5G in combat tanksin the integration of bubbles with public networks and government satellite communications, and in multinational exercises such as NATO DiBaX, which allowed NATO to be established as a provider of 5G services between different countries to facilitate operations in multiple domains.
These advances They were presented this week at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelonain a session held at the Telefónica Agora and dedicated to operational experimentation with 5G in defense and dual-use technologies, led by the company’s innovation and defense program managers.