Italy has resumed providing its contribution to the European anti-piracy operation “Atalanta”, to protect the freedom of maritime navigation in the Indian Ocean. Last Saturday, in fact, the frigate I hope of the Italian Navy officially entered the Task Force (TF) 465, according to a program of shifts between the contributing countries. The last Italian ship to have taken part in the mission had been the frigate Euro who had completed his term of office on the 30 September 2016.
Ship I hope, under the command of the frigate captain Luigi Pirozzi, with a crew of about 200 people, including the specialized teams of the marine brigade Saint Mark, of the Diving Operations Group and of the air component of the Navy with an AB212 helicopter, will be involved in the operation Atalanta for a period of about four months.
The operation Atalanta was established by the European Union in the 2008 with the aim of guaranteeing safety to the vital maritime traffic and the crews of merchant ships in transit in the area of the Horn of Africa and the Indian Ocean. Furthermore, the tasks assigned to the naval force also include those accompanying the merchants of the World Food Program (WFP) and the support, training and training of the marinas of the countries bordering the area, to achieve full capacity. suitable for guaranteeing free navigation on its seas.
