On Tuesday 25 February, the French Ministry of Defence announced the full operational capability of Operation Agénor, the military component of the ‘European led Maritime Situation Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz’ (EMASOH) initiative.
Eight Member States are participating in the EMASOH mission: Germany, Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and Portugal. Two frigates, one French and one Dutch, are on site and the mission's tactical headquarters is located at the naval base in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates).
“This operation aims to strengthen, with our partners, our capacity for situation assessment and surveillance of maritime activity and to ensure freedom of navigation in the Arabian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz”, the Ministry said in a statement.
The creation of this mission had been welcomed by the High Representative, Josep Borrell, who had announced at the Munich conference in mid-February that he wanted to propose that “this mission become European” and put this idea on the table for the Member States (see EUROPE 12407/5). No discussion on the subject, however, is planned at this time. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)