Spanish Armed Forces to lead three multinational military contingents overseas this year

Hence, between 29 February and 27 July, the amphibious assault ship Galicia will be used as the General Headquarters of the European Union Navy Force (EUNAVFOR) to assume command of Operation Atalanta, which was launched by the EU in November 2008 to combat piracy and armed robbery in waters of the western Indian Ocean.

Although its composition varies, EUNAVFOR generally consists of between four and seven ships plus between two and four maritime patrol aircraft.

Dispatch of the Spanish contingent to this naval air force was authorised by the Lower House of Parliament and the Government of Spain in January 2009. To date, Spain has been the largest contributor to this operation. It regularly maintains a maritime surveillance aircraft in the Indian Ocean based in Djibouti (the Orion Detachment of the Spanish Air Force), as well as one or two ships. The Maritime Action Ship Relámpago has been deployed from 4 October 2016 until mid-March 2017.

Spain has assumed command of this force on five occasions in the past, the most recent being from May to October 2015 with the same amphibious assault ship Galicia that will now assume command once again.

EU Rapid Response Force

In 2017, as a framework nation, Spain has also committed to preparing and certifying the European Union Rapid Response Force - the so-called Battle Group Package - in the second half of this year.

This non-permanent force can be activated following a decision from the European Union. The Lieutenant General Chief of the High Readiness Army Headquarters of the Spanish Army (Spanish acronym: GTAD), located in Bétera (Valencia), has already been named as Commander of the General Operational Headquarters.

The Force Headquarters (FHQ) will be set up on the base of the San Marcial Division headquarters. In turn, the 64th Galicia Infantry Regiment (under the Aragon I Brigade) will lead and make up the majority of the Battle Group.

In addition to army structures and servicemen, Spain will provide this force with operational and strategic training officers from the Spanish Navy, Air Force and Military Emergency Unit.

NATO Maritime Group

Within the framework of NATO, Spain has volunteered to take command of Task Unit 02 (TU-02) of Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG-2) from 29 January to 5 May.

SNMG-2 consists of a varying number of ships from various NATO countries, Spain being one of the nations providing the most units and thereby demonstrating the importance for Spain of the operations undertaken by this force. Its current mission is to ensure maritime security throughout the Mediterranean Sea. The SNMG-2 regularly takes part in Operation Active Endeavour, the main purpose of which is to dissuade the possible use of this sea by organisations with terrorist objectives. To do so, the group undertakes actions aimed at improving knowledge of the maritime environment.

In addition to this mission and as part of NATO, Spain maintains a commitment to Baltic Air Policing operations with the scheduled deployment of four F-18 aircraft from the Spanish Air Force to Estonia in May. This operation forms part of NATO's joint effort to defend the integrity of its members' airspace, and is aimed at compensating for the limitations of Baltic States in terms of air defence.