Spain announced that it will not participate in the international coalition to protect shipping traffic in the Red Sea in the face of attacks by the Houthi rebels in Yemen, but it will not oppose the participation of other European countries within the framework of a specific mission.
After several days of delay, the Spanish leftist government made clear in a Defense Ministry statement published on Saturday evening that it opposes expanding the European Atalant mission, which has been combating piracy in the Indian Ocean since 2008.
The ministry noted that the recent resumption of piracy in the region “requires maximum investment” in this mission. She also stressed that “the nature and objectives of the Atalant mission (..) have nothing to do with what we aim to achieve in the Red Sea.”
From this standpoint, the government of Pedro Sanchez considered it “indispensable” to establish a new and specific mission dedicated to protecting commercial maritime traffic in the Red Sea.
The Ministry stressed that this special mission must have “its own scope of work, means and objectives determined by the competent bodies of the European Union,” adding that “Spain is in no way opposed to the establishment of this mission.”
In response to a question from Agence France-Presse on Sunday, a ministry spokesman explained that Spain “will not participate” in the current process. The ministry did not explain the reasons for this rejection, which was announced shortly after a phone call on Friday between US President Joe Biden and Sanchez.
The White House confirmed in a statement that the conversation focused specifically on “condemning the current attacks launched by the Houthis on commercial ships in the Red Sea,” a topic that the Spanish government did not mention when it touched on this phone call.
For his part, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Houthi rebel government, Hussein Al-Ezzi, said on the “X” platform, “We highly appreciate Spain’s refusal to be drawn into the American and British lies regarding the issue of maritime navigation.”
Spanish newspapers reported on Sunday that Madrid’s refusal to participate in this US-led mission may be due to internal political reasons.
On Monday, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced in Washington the establishment of this military alliance in the Red Sea under the name “Protector of Prosperity” and under the leadership of the United States.
Austin indicated that ten countries will participate in this alliance, including Spain. However, the website “El Condencial” and the newspaper “El Pais” indicated that this announcement displeased the Spanish government, which had not been consulted in advance.
In this context, Spanish government spokeswoman Pilar Alegria warned that Madrid would “never participate in a process in a unilateral manner” and would exercise “the utmost caution.”
The establishment of this alliance constitutes an additional source of tension in relations between Madrid and Washington, which were recently shaken by an espionage case.
However, the Ministry of Defense stressed in its statement that “Spain has been and will always remain a serious and reliable ally” to the military missions of the European Union, NATO and the United Nations, “as demonstrated by the three thousand men and women of the Spanish Armed Forces” currently participating in peace missions.
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2023-12-24 18:59:24
