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The Spanish Prime Minister renewed Pedro SanchezToday, Wednesday, his country’s opposition to the participation of the “ATalantaThe European Union to combat piracy in the international coalition it formed United State To protect navigation in the Red Sea and confront attacks The Houthis.
Sanchez said, during a press conference at the end of the last Council of Ministers held this year, that his government is “ready and open to establishing European Union A different force from Atlanta, which has been fighting piracy in the Indian Ocean since 2008, and its mission is to confront Houthi attacks on commercial ships plying this waterway.”
However, the Spanish Ministry of the Interior confirmed on Sunday that Madrid would not participate in such a mission, without explaining the reason.
Madrid expressed its refusal despite a phone call on Friday between the US President joe biden and all of them
The White House confirmed in a statement that the conversation focused specifically on condemning the current attacks launched by the Houthis against commercial ships linked to the Houthis.Israel In the Red Sea.
Deputy Foreign Minister of the Houthi government, Hussein Al-Ezzi, commented on the X platform, saying, “We highly appreciate Spain’s refusal to be drawn into the American and British lies regarding the issue of maritime navigation.”
This is the first time Sanchez has made public statements on this issue since the United States announced the establishment of this international coalition on December 18.
He explained that Operation Atlanta, which is currently led by Spain and has only one ship, a Spanish frigate, does not have the necessary “specifications” to patrol the Red Sea with the aim of preventing Houthi attacks.
A few days ago, Spain announced that it would not participate in the international coalition to protect shipping traffic in the Red Sea from attacks by the Houthi group YemenHowever, it will not be opposed to participating with other European countries within the framework of a specific mission.
Last Tuesday, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the formation of a multinational coalition, in which Britain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Bahrain and the Seychelles participate, through joint patrols in the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, as part of what he called Operation “Prosperity Guardian.”
The Houthi group responded earlier that the formation of this coalition by the United States will not stop its operations in the Red Sea, which come with the aim of supporting the Palestinian people in confronting the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, and “it is not a show of force nor a challenge to anyone,” according to the group’s spokesman, Muhammad Abdel Salam. .
