Flag ship solves EU NAVFOR main task

May 15, 2010 - 21:13
The merchant vessels Rozen and Dream-H, sailing for UN World Food Programme with humanitarian aid to displaced persons in Somalia, are now safely delivered to Mogadishu after being escorted by EU NAVFOR Swedish flag ship HSwMS Carlskrona.

The flag ship of EU NAVFOR is not only carrying the Force Headquarters, she is also an Ocean Patrol Vessel with a helicopter and a boarding team in addition to own armament. During her first month in the Operation Atalanta she has solved all the different tasks that are normally performed by the units in the force; escorts, patrolling the internationally recommended transit corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden, carrying out surveillance outside the Somali coast and boarding suspected vessels. Last week, she escorted ships for World Food Programme (WFP) and AMISOM, the tasks that are the number one and two on the priority list for EU NAVFOR.

Her latest escort protecting MV Rozen and MV Dream-H loaded with WFP humanitarian aid was a golden opportunity for the Carlskrona boarding team to practice boarding and searching the vessels. This was performed in cooperation with the captains of the merchant vessels.

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 Unions 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.

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