The German frigate Hessen set sail from the port of Wilhelmshaven on Thursday, bound for the Mediterranean and then the Red Sea. On board are 240 soldiers, men and women, a fully equipped medical team and a military chaplain. The start of the “Shields” operation requires a “green light” from EU foreign ministers, which is expected to be given at their next meeting. France, Italy and Greece also participate in the mission, which will even have the central command from land.

The EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell believes that patrols in the Red Sea can begin on February 17. For the participation of the Hessen frigate, the approval of the German Federal Parliament is pending, but this is considered a formal matter and is expected within the next two weeks. According to the German Constitution, Parliament must approve any deployment of the German armed forces abroad.

“It’s a dangerous mission”

As US and British bombardment of pro-Iranian Houthi rebel positions continues, Operation Shields is focused solely on protecting merchant ships plying the Red Sea, the sea route that connects Europe to Asia. After four months of attacks by the Houthis, based in Yemen, the naval mission “Shields” is deemed necessary, says Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, MP for the German Liberals (FDP) and head of the Parliament’s Defense Affairs Committee, speaking on public broadcasting.

“Surely this is a dangerous mission, we don’t need to embellish the reality” says the MP of the Liberals. “Europe would not have mobilized if something dangerous had not happened in this region. Our goal is to detect and neutralize incoming fire, which the Hessen frigate can do very well. The crew has been specially trained for this purpose.”

At 5,000 dollars the cost of transportation

The Europeans now seem determined to prevent new Houthi attacks on ships of Western interests, which not only harm freedom of navigation, but also cause shocks to the global economy and serious costs due to the bypassing of the Suez Canal and the Red Sea. According to experts, the cost reaches 360 million euros per hour.

In January, it cost more than $5,000 to transport a 40-foot container from China to Europe, compared to just $1,500 in December 2023. The truth is, of course, that in times of pandemic, transportation costs have exceeded all predictions, reaching $15,000 per container. .

The “Shields” naval mission also contains a clear political message, emphasizes the president of the Defense Affairs Committee in the German Parliament. “This is a clear message to the Houthi rebels, but also to Iran, which is behind the rebels, that Europe will not remain a spectator when free navigation is under attack,” he points out.

The Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IFW) estimates that container traffic through the Suez and Red Seas dropped by 80% in January due to the attacks. “So far, the armed forces of the USA and Great Britain have obviously not succeeded in restoring security on the world’s busiest sea route for the transport of goods,” the IFW’s partner Julian Hinds told Reuters.

Giannis Papadimitriou