On Tuesday 15 February, EUNAVFOR Force Commander, Rear-Admiral Juan Rodriguez met Rear Admiral Zhang Huachen, Commander of Chinese Force deployed in Gulf of Aden (TF-529).
The meeting took place on board the Spanish Flagship CANARIAS, sailing in the Gulf of Aden. Rear Admiral Zhang was accompanied by his Chief of Staff and six more officers.
During the next months, Chinese ships will remain in Indian Ocean with the main aim to escort merchant vessels transiting between Red Sea and Horn of Africa, thereby contributing to the safety of those mariners transiting the area.
This was a good opportunity for EU NAVFOR to exchange information and maintain mutual understanding and knowledge with one of partners in the fight against piracy.
Coordination between the different actors operating in the Horn of Africa is of paramount importance in order to optimize their action and facilitate information sharing. This is especially importance given the size of the operational area and the coordination of a large number of ships from many different countries
EU NAVFOR Somalia Operation ATALANTA's main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Program (WFP) and vessels of African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), and to protect vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, and to deter and disrupt piracy. EU NAVFOR also monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.