On Sunday, December 24, the Spanish Defense Minister announced that his country would not be taking part in the coalition to protect maritime traffic from Houthi attacks. This coalition, led by the United States, is intended in particular to restore commercial lines that have been considerably disrupted since October 7.
Spain will not take part in the international coalition to protect maritime traffic in the Red Sea from attacks by Houthi rebels in Yemen, but will not oppose the participation of European countries in a specific mission, the Ministry of Defense told AFP on Sunday.
After several days of prevarication and obvious embarrassment, the left-wing Spanish government said in a statement issued by the Ministry of Defense on Saturday evening that it was opposed to extending the mission of the European Operation Atalanta, which has been fighting piracy in the Indian Ocean since 2008.
The ministry points out that the Atalanta mission is currently limited to Spain and a single ship, the frigate Victoria, and highlights the fact that the recent resurgence of acts of piracy in the area “requires maximum investment” in this mission.
“The nature and objectives of the Atalanta mission (…) have nothing to do with those that we are aiming to achieve in the Red Sea,” the ministry explains.
Pedro Sánchez’s government therefore considers it “essential” to create a “new and specific” mission dedicated to the protection of commercial maritime traffic in the Red Sea.
This ad hoc mission should have “its own field of action, resources and objectives, decided by the competent EU bodies,” says the ministry, adding that “Spain is in no way opposed to its creation.”
However, when questioned by AFP on Sunday, a ministry spokesman said that Spain “will not participate” in this EU operation.
The ministry did not explain the reasons for this refusal, announced shortly after a telephone call on Friday from US President Joe Biden to Sánchez.
In a statement, the White House said that the conversation had focused on “(condemnation of) the current Houthi attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea,” a subject that the Spanish government had not raised when it reported the telephone discussion.
The US-led military coalition in the Red Sea, known as “Prosperity Guardian,” aims to put an end to Houthi attacks on ships that the Iranian-backed Yemeni rebels consider to be “linked to Israel.”
These attacks have greatly disrupted maritime traffic, with many shipowners deciding to suspend all transit in the Red Sea.
Malo Pinatel, with AFP
