Newsroom

On Sunday 17th September 2017, Dutch Navy warship, HNLMS Rotterdam, carried out her first friendly approach with local Somali fishermen since she joined Operation Atalanta.

On 13 September 2017, the Dutch Landing Platform Dock (LPD) HNLMS Rotterdam joined the EU Naval Force operation ATALANTA, aimed to protect vulnerable vessels in the Western Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt acts of piracy.

French warship (FS) Auvergne and Operation Atalanta’s flagship ITS Virginio Fasan conducted counter-piracy exercises to enhance cooperation and to broaden their expertise off the coast of Somalia.

On 7 September 2017, EU NAVFOR Operation Atalanta’s Force Commander, Rear Admiral Fabio Gregori, visited Mogadishu to meet international partners from  the United Nations Assistance Mission to Somalia (UNSOM), the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), and military partners including the US.

For the second time this year, European Naval Force personnel have helped train the Maritime Police Unit in Mogadishu. Organised by the EUCAP Somalia and assisted by UNODC, this vital training enhances local capability in maintaining maritime security.

On September 7th crew members from ESPS Rayo continued the regional cooperation EU NAVFOR has established with the AMISOM Marine unit off the coast of Mogadishu.

On Wednesday 6 September, the German P-3C-Orion Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft (MPRA) left its base in Nordholz, Germany to rejoin the fight against piracy being conducted by EU NAVFOR.

On 28th August, Italian warship, ITS Virginio Fasan, welcomed representatives of the Royal Navy of Oman (RNO) during a port visit to Muscat in the Sultanate of Oman.

On Wednesday 30th August, during her port visit to Djibouti, EU Naval Force warship ESPS Rayo conducted Local Maritime Capacity Building (LMCB) training in support of the Djiboutian Coast Guard.

Operation Atalanta’s Italian flagship, ITS Virginio Fasan, recently spent time alongside in the port of Muscat, Sultanate of Oman.  This marks the fourth visit of EU NAVFOR warships to the Sultanate of Oman this month.

Protecting potentially vulnerable vessels from piracy off the coast of Somalia is one of Operation Atalanta’s key tasks. The Spanish warship, ESPS Rayo, recently escorted two World Food Programme (WFP) chartered Dhows as she transited through the Gulf of Aden carrying precious food-aid.

For the third time this year, Republic of Korea and EU NAVFOR warships have come together to continue their cooperation in the fight against piracy.