The EU wants to secure shipping traffic in the Red Sea – and take part in a naval mission. Now the project is becoming more concrete. Among other things, warships are to be sent as part of the US initiative.
The planned EU naval mission to secure shipping in the Red Sea is taking shape. The foreign ministers of the EU states are to discuss possible EU participation in the US “Prosperity Guardian” initiative at a meeting on January 22nd. According to information from the dpa news agency, the EU Foreign Service has drawn up initial proposals for the start of a new joint European military operation. Among other things, they provide for the deployment of warships and airborne early warning systems to the conflict area. The latter could be reconnaissance aircraft, for example.
The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell had already proposed the mission at the end of the year. It is unclear whether a fundamental political decision for the deployment can be made at the meeting of foreign ministers. According to EU diplomats, further preliminary discussions are planned for next week. The formal decision to start the military operation should ideally be made at the February meeting of the EU foreign ministers.
Baerbock: Consultations “under high pressure”
Germany supports the plans. “We as the federal government are ready to take part in a mission in the Red Sea and are continuing to be in close contact with the European External Action Service and the other member states in the EU,” said the spokesman for the Foreign Office in Berlin. However, the mandate still needs to be “firmed down”. Statements about the extent of possible German participation are therefore not yet possible. If the Bundeswehr were to take part in a new EU military mission, the approval of the Bundestag would be required.
Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said during a visit to Kuala Lumpur that the EU was working “hard” on the plans. “We as the EU are working intensively on how we can strengthen the situation in the Red Sea and contribute to this stabilization ourselves,” said the Green politician.
The original plan was to simply expand the mandate of the existing anti-piracy operation “Atalanta” in the Indian Ocean to support the US initiative. However, this plan failed due to resistance from Spain, which is currently the lead nation in Operation Atalanta. The reason for the veto was a dispute within the Spanish government coalition over the country’s direct participation in military operations in the Red Sea.
Strengthen international military presence
Operation Prosperity Guardian, launched by the USA, aims to significantly increase the international military presence in the Red Sea and prevent attacks on ships. Since the outbreak of the war between Israel and the Islamist Hamas, Iran-backed Houthi rebels have repeatedly attacked ships with alleged Israeli connections in the Red Sea. Large shipping companies are increasingly avoiding the route.
The USA and Great Britain attacked Houthi positions on Friday night with the support of the Netherlands, Canada, Australia and Bahrain. The attack was a response to the “illegal, dangerous and destabilizing” attacks on ships in the Red Sea and was based on the right of self-defense, it said in a joint statement, which was also supported by the federal government. One goal of the Houthi rebels is to force an end to Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip.
Anne Allmeling, ARD Cairo, tagesschau, January 12, 2024 12:04 p.m