EU Naval Force - Somalia
Operation ATALANTA

On 26 July, the Russian destroyer ADMIRAL LEVCHENKO began escorting a World Food Programme (WFP) shipment, in support of EU NAVFOR. Force Commander Jan Thörnqvist said:  “This is a clear demonstration of the excellent co-operation between our European Task Force 465 and the Russian Navy”.

EU NAVFOR welcomes the involvement of the Russian Navy in Operation ATALANTA’s main task of escorting World Food Programme (WFP) vessels.  The WFP has provided more than half a million tonnes of food into Somalia since late 2007.

The destroyer ADMIRAL LEVCHENKO arrived in the Gulf of Aden earlier this month to take part in the counter-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia; she relieved the destroyer MARSHAL SHAPOSHNIKOV.

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.