Madrid, Jun 27 (IANS): Thousands of demonstrators rallied here to call for peace and protest against a NATO summit to be held in the Spanish capital later this week.

Social, anti-military and pacifist movements from around the world gathered to show support for a congress concluded here by an anti-NATO group, and its latest declaration calling for peace.

Jose Luis Centella, president of the Communist Party of Spain, told Xinhua news agency that "many, thousands of people are demonstrating today in Madrid for peace, for a multilateral world so that Spain can live in harmony".

While mentioning the drastic increase in Spain's military spending, a protester called for attention to "other problems such as the closure of emergency services, and outpatient clinics and hospitals which are more saturated every day, but there is no money for that."

Demonstrators believed that an increase in defence spending in Europe urged by the US-led military alliance was a threat to peace, saying the spending should be given to schools and hospitals.

As a response to the ongoing massive demonstration, the Spanish government has deployed tight security ahead of the upcoming NATO Summit.