Open to creation of new EU mission to protect vessels in Red Sea, says Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez

Spain is against deploying the European Union’s anti-piracy naval force to safeguard merchant ships in the Red Sea from the Yemeni Houthi militia but it is open to exploring the establishment of an alternative mission to address the issue, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Wednesday. The Houthi militia, backed by Iran and controlling significant portions of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, has targeted commercial vessels in the Red Sea since October. Their attacks are claimed to be in solidarity with Palestinians facing Israeli forces’ aggression in Gaza or with vessels they believe have Israeli connections. “We are willing and open to consider such an operation but not within the framework of Operation Atalanta,” Sanchez said, referring to the existing EU mission. He said he had conveyed to Madrid’s allies in both NATO and the EU that Operation Atalanta had “neither the characteristics nor the nature required for the Red Sea”. The situation in the Red Sea was “completely different” from Atalanta’s area of operation, the Indian Ocean, where the EU’s main mission was to combat piracy. Several shipping lines have suspended operations through the Red Sea in response to the attacks instead taking the longer journey around southern Africa. The Houthis say they will continue their attacks until Israel halts the conflict in Gaza and say they will attack U.S. warships if the militia group itself was targeted. With inputs from Reuters.