Spain concludes its command of Standing NATO Maritime Group 1

• Spanish Rear Admiral Ruiz Escagedo hands over command of SNMG-1 to British Commodore Ingham, following a three-month deployment

Spain has concluded its command of Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG-1), following three months of operational activity in northern Europe.

At a ceremony held at the naval base in Portsmouth, UK, Rear Admiral Joaquín Ruiz Escagedo handed over command to British Commodore Maryla Ingham, who will take charge of the group, ensuring the operational continuity of the allied naval force by maintaining a permanent maritime presence and the capacity for immediate response to potential crises.

Rear Admiral Ruiz Escagedo, at the head of a multinational Joint Staff aboard the frigate ‘Almirante Juan de Borbón’, has led SNMG-1 since last January, directing operations and exercises in strategic areas such as the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Baltic Sea.

Under Spanish command, the group has made a decisive contribution to strengthening allied maritime security, as well as to improving interoperability between the navies of the member countries.

For the first time, Spain has provided support for the enhanced Arctic surveillance operation (eVA ‘Arctic Sentry’), a multi-domain military operation aimed at strengthening NATO’s posture in the Arctic and the High North. In addition, the Spanish Navy has contributed to SNMG-1 with the Combat Supply Ship (BAC in Spanish) ‘Patiño’, which has participated —alongside the frigate ‘Almirante Juan de Borbón’— in various surveillance and forward presence activities as part of ‘Baltic Sentry’, carrying out regular patrols and joint exercises to ensure stability and freedom of navigation in the Baltic Sea.

The integration of these frigates into Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 — under the operational control of the Joint Operations Command — reaffirms the professionalism and commitment of the Spanish crews, as well as the operational effectiveness demonstrated throughout the command period. With these deployments, the Spanish Armed Forces consolidate their capacity as a framework nation, capable of leading complex naval operations in any scenario.

 Spanish leadership in multinational naval operations

In addition to Spain’s aforementioned leadership of Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG-1), the Spanish Maritime Forces Headquarters (SPMARFOR) is currently serving—until July 2026—as the Maritime Component Command (MCC) of NATO’s Allied Response Force (ARF). On board the Amphibious Assault Ship (BAA in Spanish) ‘Castilla’, under the command of Vice-Admiral Pérez Puig, Spain led all the maritime units participating in the ‘Steadfast Dart 26’ exercise, consolidating its role as a framework nation capable of leading complex naval operations in a multinational environment.

Furthermore, it is worth noting that, since 2019, Spain has led Operation ‘Atalanta’ from its Headquarters in Rota. In this context, it is customary for a Spanish Navy vessel to serve as the flagship of this operation, which carries out maritime surveillance and anti-piracy duties off the northern coast of Somalia.