Confirming in substance what we wrote yesterday, Greece is even closer to sending a warship to the Red Sea as the situation in the Red Sea is escalating dangerously with Houthi attacks on merchant ships following one another. The West is moving decisively to form a strong naval force in the region, in which 10 countries including the US have already signed up.
The Deputy Minister of National Defence, Mr. Ioannis Kefalogiannis, represented on Tuesday 19 December 2023, the Minister of National Defence, Mr. Nikos Dendias, at the Conference held via teleconference, at the initiative of the US Secretary of Defence, Mr. Lloyd Austin, and which was attended by the Ministers of Defence of countries mainly from the EU, the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East.
The meeting focused on the burning security issues in the Red Sea, with particular emphasis on the restoration of freedom of navigation following the Houthi attacks.
So far, no decision has been taken in Athens, but as well-informed sources who spoke to Pentapostagma pointed out, it will not be long before the Greek fleet will be called upon to send a frigate as 19% of the merchant shipping is under the Greek flag.
Kefalogiannis reaffirmed Greece's strong and unwavering commitment to the principles of International Law, underlining its role as a pillar of stability, peace and prosperity in a constantly changing international environment.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said. The Red Sea is a critical waterway that has been essential to freedom of navigation and an important trade corridor that facilitates international trade. Countries that seek to uphold the fundamental principle of freedom of navigation must come together to address the challenge posed by this non-state actor that launches ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at merchant ships from many nations legally transiting international waters.
This is an international challenge that requires collective action. Therefore, today I am announcing the establishment of Operation Prosperity Guardian, a major new multinational security initiative under the umbrella of the Combined Maritime Forces and the leadership of Task Force 153, which focuses on security in the Red Sea.
Operation Prosperity Guardian brings together several countries including the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles, Canada, France, Italy, the Seychelles and Spain to jointly address security challenges in the Southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, with the aim of ensuring freedom of navigation for all countries and enhancing regional security and prosperity."
Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder provided the following reading of the US Secretary's actions: "During his trip to the Middle East, Secretary Austin convened a virtual ministerial meeting with ministers, defense chiefs and senior representatives from 43 countries, as well as from the European Union and NATO, to discuss the heightened maritime security threat in the Red Sea. Secretary Austin reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce in the region's critical waterways and outlined the ways in which Houthi attacks are destabilizing maritime security. Secretary Austin stressed that the attacks had already affected the global economy and would continue to threaten commercial shipping if the international community did not come together to collectively address the issue. Secretary Austin condemned the Houthi attacks on international shipping and global trade as unprecedented and unacceptable, noting that the attacks threatened the free flow of trade and endangered innocent seafarers.
The Secretary and senior leadership of the Department of Defense, including the Commander of U.S. Central Command, General Kurila, and the Commander of U.S. Central Command, Vice Admiral Cooper, informed participants that the Houthis had handled over 100 one-way unmanned aerial systems ( UAS) and ballistic missile attacks, targeting 10 commercial ships involving more than 35 different nations. They pointed out that the Houthis had taken the merchant vessel GALAXY LEADER and its 25-member international crew hostage on November 19; the crew remains unjustly detained in Yemen. Participants discussed how the attacks are a flagrant violation of international law and the Houthis must stop their aggressive actions. Currently, 10-15% of global trade passes through the Red Sea and international shipping companies must reroute through the Cape of Good Hope, adding weeks to the delivery of essential goods and materials, including oil and gas.
In response to this unprecedented series of attacks, the Minister urged participants to engage in US-led and other international initiatives and to work with USNAVCENT and the 39-member Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) to restore security in the Red Sea. to deter future Houthi aggression. Secretary Austin pointed to CMF Task Force 153 - tasked with international maritime security and capacity building in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb and the Gulf of Aden - as an existing multilateral platform that could be used to deter attacks within the CMF. He reiterated that the international community faces an unprecedented global challenge that requires collective action. The United States will continue to consult and work with allies and partners who share the fundamental principle of freedom of navigation."
Interestingly, the "Combined Maritime Forces" of 39 countries includes Greece! The Greek Navy has experience of operations in the region as during the first Gulf War the frigates "Elli" and "Lemnos" patrolled there.
The US alone has five destroyers loaded with tomahawk missiles in the area and there is a US aircraft carrier in the Red Sea.
