Two Colombian Navy officers arrived at the Rota Naval Base in the province of Cadiz, Spain, to join the European Union Naval Force Atalanta for Integrated Stabilization of the United Nations in Somalia, in the horn of Africa and in the Western Indian Ocean, as part of their operations to help eradicate piracy off the coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden.
Commander Jairo Adolfo Sánchez Hernández and Lieutenant Juan Pablo Montoya Méndez traveled this weekend and will be part of this Naval Force for six months. After the initial integration, one of the Officers will join the General Staff and the other Officer will sail in the Frigate Navarra of the Spanish Navy, within the framework of the operations carried out in this region.
In a military ceremony presided over by Vice Admiral José María Núñez Torrente, Commander of the European Naval Force Mediterranean - Eunavfor Med Operation Sophia, the hoisting of the National Flag was carried out at the Naval Base facilities, as part of the welcome to the Colombian Navy for its participation in this operation.
Participation in Operation Atalanta 2015
It should be recalled that the Colombian Navy participated in Operation Atalanta with the ship ARC 7 de Agosto in 2015 and, under the tutelage of the Spanish Navy, protected the ships of the World Food Program that the Task Force determined according to their vulnerability, accompanying them within an area until they arrived in a safe area to be received by other military units of the different countries participating in Operation Atalanta.
To fulfill this mission, the crew Resources and execution of procedures were evaluated and certified, on three occasions. The first evaluation was carried out by the Colombian Navy Fleet Evaluation Center. Subsequently, it was evaluated by the Spanish Navy's Combat Assessment Centre – Cevaco in Rota, which verified the Resources that led it to enter the Multinational Task Force of Operation Atalanta, contributing to the preservation of good order at sea against transnational threats and to the protection of vulnerable ships in the Horn of Africa.
Source: press-Colombian Navy
