Norway is considering participating in an international operation to ensure the safety of ships in the Red Sea after the United States asked the country to contribute to the international maritime operation, the portal writes on December 17 E24.
“Norway recently received a request from the United States to assist in an international security operation in the Red Sea. The request is currently being considered,” said State Secretary of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Eivind Vad Petersson.
Thus, the United States will expand the composition of the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF). They comprise a total of 39 countries (including Norway). Their goal is to create “an international coalition that devotes resources to defend freedom of navigation.” The task force is known as Combined Task Force 153. The CMF is led by the United States Fifth Fleet, which is stationed in Bahrain.
The Norwegian Shipowners' Association, in response to the US request, said the country should contribute, association CEO Harald Solberg wrote in an email to E24.
According to him, Norway, as a key maritime power, will make an appropriate contribution to the international coalition to ensure the safe movement of civilian ships through Bab el-Mandeb, past Yemen and further towards the Suez Canal.
The situation in the Red Sea escalated this week, with the world's two largest container shipping companies, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, halting ship traffic in the area following drone attacks.
On December 15, Axios, citing officials, reported that the United States would announce the deployment of coalition forces in the Red Sea to deter Houthi attacks against civilian ships. We are talking about a special modernized multinational task force.
On December 14, the British Navy announced a “new incident” in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Earlier in the day The Washington Post reported that in this strait, during an attempt to attack the Maersk ship, two missiles launched by the Houthis flew approximately 50 m from the sides of the ship. None of the crew were injured. Information about the attack on the ship was confirmed by Yemeni rebels (Houthis).
On December 13, Israeli President Isaac Herzog announced that the Yemeni rebels (Houthis) had crossed a red line due to attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea and called on the international community for a collective response to these actions.
Earlier, on December 9, Yahya Saria, a representative of the Shiite Houthi movement Ansar Allah, threatened to attack any ship heading to Israel, regardless of which country it belongs to. On the same day, the French Armed Forces reported that their frigate shot down two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) moving in its direction over the Red Sea from Yemen.
The first report of the attack in the Red Sea appeared on December 3 on the UKMTO website. It was reported that on the Yemeni side, UAV activity and a possible explosion were noted in the vicinity of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. On the same day, it was reported that the US Navy destroyer USS Carney was attacked by drones and missiles fired from Yemen.
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