Defense assures that any mission to guarantee maritime security in the Red Sea “must be a specific mission with its own entity”, which Spain is not opposed to, but rejects changing the mandate of the Spanish naval operation ‘Atlanta’ to to contribute to no mission.
He Department of Defense stressed this Saturday that it will not participate in the operation launched by the United States to guarantee the safety of maritime traffic in the Red Sea and has proposed the creation of a “new and specific” European mission to achieve “maximum effectiveness” in this objective.
The department led by Margarita Robles has therefore maintained the position it had already taken last Tuesday not to intervene in the ‘Guardian of Prosperity’ operation announced by the United States in response to attacks Houthi rebels for ships passing through Red Sea.
Moreover, Defense has assured in a statement that there will be no Spanish veto against an EU mission in the Red Sea Spain blocked the EU decision to change the mandate of the naval operation ‘Atalanta’ to contribute to the mission.
“Spain is and will always be a serious and reliable ally, committed to the EU, NATO and the UN (…). The commitment of Spain and its armed forces to peace is total and absolute,” he guaranteed in this regard. In the context of this commitment, he emphasized that any mission with the aim of ensuring maritime security in the Red Sea,”It must be a specific mission with its own entity in which the naval forces of European countries that wish to do so participate and not merely an extension of Operation ‘Atalanta’“.
In this sense, he recalled that ‘Atalanta’ is an operation against piracy in the Indian Ocean led exclusively and in which Spain participates, and that the frigate Victoria is the one acting in this mission.
For this reason, he considers it “obvious” that “the nature and objectives of the ‘Atalanta’ anti-piracy mission in the Indian Ocean have nothing to do with the objectives that would be achieved in the Red Sea.”
“That’s the reason Spain wants to maintain the ‘Atalanta’ operation, with its current objectives, expansion and scope “When it is confirmed that the fight against piracy in the Indian Ocean, as we have seen in recent days with two pirate ships in a very short time, requires maximum commitment,” he stated.
In this way, he has defended that “to achieve the maximum effectiveness to be aimed for in the Red Sea” it is “essential” to “create a new and specific mission, with its own scope, means and objectives, agreed by the corresponding organizations.” of the EU”. “A creation that Spain is not against in any way,” he declared.
Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
