European Union Expands Naval Operations in Red Sea and Western Indian Ocean

Kathmandu. The European Union (EU) has announced plans to expand its naval operations in the Red Sea and the Western Indian Ocean.

EU member states stated in a communiqué, 'Under the updated mandate, ships and aircraft deployed in the bloc's two maritime missions will be authorized to gather information regarding suspicious activities related to critical submarine infrastructure.'

According to the communiqué, 'This expansion will also include tasks such as training the Djibouti naval force and cooperating with the Yemeni coast guard.'

These measures fall under the EU's 'Aspides' and 'Atalanta' missions. The objective of 'Aspides' is to protect commercial shipping, particularly from attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, while 'Atalanta' was established in 2008 to control piracy in the region.

The European Union clarified that this expanded naval operation is not related to the call made by US President Donald Trump for European allies to secure the transport of oil and gas through the Strait of Hormuz.

Instead, according to EU officials, this move is partly intended to improve surveillance of Russia's so-called 'shadow fleet,' which is being used to circumvent the price cap imposed by Ukraine's Western supporters on Russian oil exports. They also suspect that the fleet might be used for sabotage activities targeting submarine infrastructure.