1 month ago - Operation Aspides, also known as ... Sea. Named after the Greek word for shields (Greek: Ασπίδες), the EU describes Operation Aspides as a "purely defensive" mission to increase maritime surveillance in the region, provide escort to merchant vessels, and defend against ...

The EUNAVFOR ASPIDES within its defensive mandate is to provide maritime situational awareness, accompany vessels, and protect them against possible multi-domain attacks at sea.

On February 2025, EU Council decided to prolong the mandate of the operation until 28 February 2026. ASPIDES’ mandate is clear and comprehensive. At its core, the mission aims to contribute to Freedom of Navigation, enhance maritime security, and promote stability in the region.

March 16, 2026 - Aspides currently has three objectives: escort vessels, maintain maritime situational awareness and protect ships from multi-domain threats at sea. More specifically, Aspides protects shipping targeted by attacks at sea or from air, but does ...

March 7, 2024 - After initial scattered operational responses from member states, the EU launched Aspides on February 19 for a one-year mandate. Protection of shipping is the mission’s only executive task, which will have to be defined and adapted, depending on the force flow and the number of requests for protection.

The Bundeswehr has been participating in Operation EUNAVFOR Aspides since 23 February 2024, with its main focus on the Red Sea.

March 15, 2026 - Aspides is an EU naval operation launched in the Red Sea in response to Houthi attacks on international shipping in February 2024.

April 7, 2026 - The mission’s objectives were to restore and safeguard freedom of navigation, escort and protect vessels, and enhance maritime situational awareness in the Red Sea. From this perspective, Aspides achieved notable operational and tactical results, yet did not fully accomplish its stated goals, ...

February 23, 2026 - EUNAVFOR ASPIDES was established by the EU in February 2024 as a defensive operation in response to the Red Sea crisis, following repeated Houthi attacks on international shipping since October 2023.

March 20, 2025 - ASPIDES’ mandate is clear and comprehensive, designed to tackle the complex and evolving challenges posed by the security crisis in the region. At its core, the mission contributes to freedom of navigation, enhances maritime security, and ...

On February 2025, EU Council decided to prolong the mandate of the operation until 28 February 2026. ASPIDES’ mandate is clear and comprehensive. At its core, the mission aims to contribute to Freedom of Navigation, enhance maritime security, and promote stability in the region.

February 16, 2024 - Aspides has been tasked with strengthening deterrence in the area and defending commercial vessels against Houthi attacks. Greece will reportedly host and command the mission; France, Germany, and Italy should be key contributors as well.

April 5, 2025 - Mission Aspides is a European Union (EU) naval mission to protect cargo ships in the Red Sea from attacks from Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

March 30, 2026 - The mission provides defensive escorts and maritime security coverage around the Bab al-Mandab Strait while monitoring key waterways stretching from the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden to the Arabian Sea and Strait of Hormuz.

May 2, 2025 - The EU naval mission, carried out under its Common Security and Defense Policy, underscores how ensuring maritime security and maintaining the stability of global supply chains are front ...

February 20, 2024 - As Houthi attacks on merchant ships ... of the defensive maritime security operation is to restore and safeguard freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and the Gulf....

February 17, 2025 - Aspides was launched on February 8, 2024, as a defensive mission to protect shipping in the Red Sea, including the Bab al-Mandeb and the Gulf of Aden as well as a broader reach to the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Strait ...

The Aspides mission was launched on February 19, 2024, as a military operation by the European Union aimed at protecting ships from Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.

February 26, 2026 - Alongside the U.S.-led Operation Prosperity Guidance, the European Union's Aspides naval mission aims to protect the Red Sea region.