Brussels 24.03.2024 Shipping company Maersk said it was too early to resume navigation through the Red Sea due to a continued elevated risk level, despite an initiative by the European Union to increase safety in the region.

The disruption also led to a 1.3% drop in global trade in December of last year, and uncertainty about Red Sea shipping has created difficulties for transporting international aid into Sudan torn by civil war.

Maersk, one of the world’s biggest container shipping companies, suspended Red Sea traffic on January 5 and has since redirected ships via the Cape of Good Hope.

The EU’s naval mission in the southern Red Sea was launched in February to help protect the key maritime trade route from drone and missile attacks by Yemen’s Houthi movement, who insist they are retaliating against Israel’s war on Gaza.

The EU Council launched today EUNAVFOR ASPIDES on February 19 with the objective of this defensive maritime security operation is to restore and safeguard freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and the Gulf.

Operation ASPIDES was intended to ensure an EU naval presence in the area where numerous Houthi attacks had targeted international commercial vessels since October 2023. In close cooperation with like-minded international partners, ASPIDES would contribute to safeguard maritime security and ensure freedom of navigation, especially for merchant and commercial vessels. Within its defensive mandate, the operation would provide maritime situational awareness, accompany vessels, and protect them against possible multi-domain attacks at sea.

The operation will be active along the main sea lines of communication in the Baab al-Mandab Strait and the Strait of Hormuz, as well as international waters in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Oman, and the Gulf.

The Operation Commander will be Commodore Vasileios Gryparis, and the Force Commander will be Rear Admiral Stefano Costantino. The Operation headquarters will be based in Larissa, Greece.

Operation ASPIDES will coordinate closely with the EUNAVFOR ATALANTA to contribute to maritime security in the West Indian Ocean and in the Red Sea, as well as, with like-minded partners contributing to maritime security in its area of operation.