Sunday June 15, 2025
Spanish Navy personnel stand in formation aboard the ESPS Navarra during a change-of-command ceremony for the European Union's Operation Atalanta, held at the Port of Djibouti on June 12, 2025. Rear Admiral Francisco Javier Vázquez Sanz assumed leadership of the EU’s counter-piracy naval mission, marking the start of the operation’s 50th rotation. (Photo: EU NAVFOR/Handout)
Mogadishu (HOL) — Spain has officially taken command of the European Union’s long-running counter-piracy operation off the coast of Somalia, as Rear Admiral Francisco Javier Vázquez Sanz assumed leadership of Operation Atalanta in a formal ceremony held June 12 aboard the Italian frigate ITS Rizzo in Djibouti.
Vázquez Sanz, representing the Spanish Navy, succeeded Italian Rear Admiral Davide Da Pozzo in what marks the 50th rotation of the EU’s flagship maritime security mission. The Spanish warship ESPS Navarra was named the new flagship of the operation, replacing its Italian predecessor.
Operation Atalanta was launched in 2008 to combat piracy in the Gulf of Aden and protect critical shipping lanes, including those used by vessels from the World Food Programme and other humanitarian agencies. The mission has since evolved to include surveillance of arms trafficking, narcotics smuggling, and illegal fishing, while also supporting regional maritime security efforts.
"Rear Admiral Vázquez Sanz’s appointment reflects the EU’s continued commitment to stability and freedom of navigation in the western Indian Ocean," the European External Action Service said in a statement following the transition. The European Council formally approved the decision to appoint the Spanish commander on June 10 under Decision (CFSP) 2025/1173.
Though piracy incidents off Somalia have declined sharply from their peak in the early 2010s, EU naval officials warn that the threat remains, particularly in ungoverned coastal areas and amid broader regional instability affecting the Red Sea and Horn of Africa.
Spain, a founding contributor to Operation Atalanta, also hosts the mission’s operational headquarters at Rota Naval Base. With Djibouti continuing to serve as a key logistics hub, the EU says its naval presence remains critical to securing the Bab al-Mandab Strait—one of the world’s busiest maritime chokepoints through which nearly 10% of global trade passes.