On Monday 16 March, EU foreign affairs ministers supported the strengthening of the EU’s Red Sea operation, ASPIDES, but did not want its mandate to be changed to include intervention in the Strait of Hormuz.
On Sunday, US President Donald Trump called on his allies and China to provide assistance to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
“Ministers reaffirmed that our priority is appeasement and freedom of navigation”, stressed the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, at the end of the Foreign Affairs Council. “We have ASPIDES that plays a key role in safeguarding the freedom of navigation. There was in our discussions a clear wish to strengthen this operation. But for the time being, there was no appetite in changing the mandate of the operation”, explained Kaja Kallas, adding that ASPIDES did not have sufficient naval forces and that it should have more. The operation currently has three ships at its disposal. The two ships announced by France will operate either in direct support of the mission, or as associated support, according to a European diplomat.
While the Strait of Hormuz is at the heart of concerns, the Red Sea - where ASPIDES is operating - also remains a “critical” issue, the High Representative pointed out.
Even before the Council, it seemed clear that changing the mandate to allow the mission to operate in the Strait of Hormuz - which would require it to become an executive mission - would not meet with the unanimous Member State approval.
On Sunday, German Minister for Foreign Affairs, Johann Wadephul, said that the mission was “not effective”, and that he was therefore “very sceptical about the effectiveness of extending ASPIDES to the Strait of Hormuz to enhance security”. On Monday, he and his Dutch counterpart argued in favour of sanctions against those who violate the freedom of navigation.
For his part, the Spanish minister, José Manuel Albares, said he was convinced that the mandate of Operation ASPIDES was “appropriate”, that the mission was “perfectly” fulfilling its function, and therefore that “no change [was] necessary”.
“It seems logical to me to examine possible solutions with our international partners. (...) Nor do I think that sending a few ships will solve the problem overnight. It’s a very delicate situation, and a very reasonable one”, explained the Dutch minister, Tom Berendsen. And he added that: “The Netherlands does not wish to shirk its responsibilities, but this is not a decision to be taken lightly”.
The Italian minister, Antonio Tajani, while calling for the strengthening of the EU’s maritime defence missions, ASPIDES and ATALANTA, explained that he “[does] not think that these missions could be extended to Hormuz”. He pointed out that ASPIDES was a defensive mission and that changing the mandate to include action in the Strait would require “a complete overhaul”. In his view, for the Strait of Hormuz, the diplomatic route must prevail. “A further diplomatic effort must be made to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a challenge not only for Western countries, but for the whole world, including China”, explained the minister. Ms Kallas explained that she was in contact with these partners on this subject. She also said that, over the weekend, she had spoken to the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, about the possibility of setting up an initiative similar to the Black Sea initiative, which had enabled Ukrainian grains to be exported. This was an idea that left José Manuel Albares feeling sceptical, as he believed that the most important thing was to put an end to the spiral of violence and escalation.
With regard to a NATO mission, as requested by US President, Donald Trump, several ministers first wanted to know what Trump’s plans were for Iran. “NATO is there to intervene if one of its members is attacked, and I would like to point out that none of us has been directly attacked”, said Luxembourg’s Xavier Bettel.
At their European Council meeting, on Thursday 19 March, European leaders are expected, according to draft conclusions dated 13 March, to reiterate the need to ensure maritime safety and respect for the freedom of navigation, and to condemn any act that threatens navigation or prevents ships from entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz. They are expected to emphasise the role of ASPIDES and ATALANTA operations and welcome their reinforcement with additional resources.
See the draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/l71 (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)