NATO has sailed into Alicante as fourteen ships from five different countries are carrying out anti-mine manoeuvres in local waters Many of the ships spent the weekend docked in the Alicante Port. In total there are currently eight Navy ships operating off the coast, two from the Italian Navy, two from the Turkish Navy and one each from the France and Greece. A number of other ships are also operating off the Balearic Islands.
Since last Monday they have been participating in “ESP MINEX 23”, an advanced mine warfare exercise which is part of the NATO Euromarfor maneuver
The exercise will continue all this week until Friday, when they will gather in the Port of Alicante for a post-exercise meeting, led by the commander of the Anti-Mine Measures Force (Comtemecom), Captain of the Navy, Javier Ruiz Ruiz de Cortazar.
In addition to the ships, a helicopter (SH60F) from the Navy’s Fifth Aircraft Squadron and the Countermine Measures Diving Unit (UBMCM) are also taking part, along with diving units specialised in Mine Warfare with underwater vehicle operation teams, drones from Belgium and the United States and observers from the Romanian Navy.
Euromarfor is a non-permanent Multinational Maritime Force, with air-naval and amphibious capacity, of variable composition. It was established in 1995 by Spain, France, Italy and Portugal to carry out the missions that are contained in the Petersberg Declaration such as: humanitarian missions, peacekeeping, crisis response operations, preventive deployments, maritime patrols, mine clearance and peace enforcement operations.
The command of Euromarfor (Comeuromarfor) rotates every two years among the four participating countries with Spain having commanded the force since September 2021.
Frigate Captain José M. Liarte Ros, commander of the First Minehunter Squadron, exercises tactical command at sea of the Euromarfor Countermine Measures Group , made up on this occasion by three Navy minehunters (“Segura”, ” Sella” and “Duero”), a French minesweeper (“Lyre”), an Italian minesweeper (“Viareggio”) and an Italian officer as part of his General Staff.
The participation of Euromarfor in this exercise shows the commitment of the nations that form it to maintain the readiness of the force and provide a safer maritime environment , as highlighted by the Ministry of Defense.
