EU’s Red Sea naval mission will not involve combat: Foreign policy chief

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - The European Union will not send its ships into combat missions in the Red Sea, the bloc’s foreign policy chief said on Friday.

Speaking to reporters in Spain, Josep Borrell said that the EU is preparing a naval mission to the Red Sea, but that its “sole goal is to protect shipping.”

“We should do what is possible to guarantee the freedom of navigation but at the same time, avoid an escalation,” he said.

On Monday, EU foreign policy ministers will meet in Brussels to discuss, among other topics, the naval mission to protect commercial vessels from Houthi attacks.

"The idea is to have a European mission that can be operational as soon as possible," Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told journalists on Wednesday. "The political decision for us must be made by next Monday."

Spain’s Defense Minister Margarita Robles has also said that while Spain will not join the EU mission “out of a sense of responsibility and a commitment to peace,” it will not block the European mission either.

Last week, the US-led mission in the Red Sea launched several strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.

On Thursday, US President Joe Biden admitted that the strikes were not stopping the Houthi attacks on shipping vessels. However, speaking to reporters, he said the strikes will continue.

Meanwhile, Borrell said that the Red Sea runs “a serious risk” of escalating the war in Gaza by disrupting global shipping in a vital artery.

“We are on the brink of a situation that could be very dangerous,” he said.

On Friday, Borrell also gave a long speech at the University of Valladolid, where he accepted an honorary doctorate.

In it, he said: “We are facing a moment with the highest level of geopolitical risk since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. It also reminds me of the scenarios of the 1930s,” referring to the years leading up to the Second World War.