EU Naval Force - Somalia
Operation ATALANTA

On 25 July, the French frigate GUÉPRATTE conducted her last day of operations as part of the EU NAVFOR Task Force and is now heading home to Toulon. She has conducted a variety of tasks whilst deployed; escorts, patrolling the IRTC and performing Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) tasks.

EU NAVFOR Force Commander Jan Thörnqvist emphasised that FS GUÉPRATTE always analysed tasks professionally and diligently, maintaining constant communications with the Force Headquarters and successfully completing all tasks asked of her.

In his farewell signal Rear Admiral Thörnqvist stated: “Always proactive in getting the task in hand completed, to a high standard, from handling the SOLAS-case of the dhow Mahara to being a forerunner into further developing EU NAVFOR relationships with the Kenyan Magistrates.”

EU NAVFOR Somalia – Operation ATALANTA’s main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Programme (WFP) and vessels of  African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM and to protect vulnerable vessels in the Gulf  of Aden and Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt piracy. EU NAVFOR also monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia