Spain takes the lead of naval and air forces within EUNAVFOR Atalanta

• The handover ceremony took place in the port of Djibouti, on board the Italian ship "Carabiniere" and was chaired by Operation Atalanta's Commander, vice admiral José María Núñez Torrente

The handover ceremony was held on board the Italian ship "Carabiniere" in the port of Djibouti, in which Spanish Rear Admiral Alejandro Cuerda Lorenzo took over from Italian Rear Admiral Luca Pasquale Esposito as Force Commander of the naval and air units involved in Operation Atalanta. The ceremony was chaired by Operation Atalanta's Commander, Vice Admiral José María Núñez Torrente. Spain thus takes over from Italy the leadership of the forces deployed in the area of operations of Operation Atalanta.

The ceremony had a small number of guests, due to the restrictions posed by the pandemic, and took place on the flight deck of the Italian ship, with the 37th Rotation of the embarked General Staff (FHQ) and the crew of the "Carabiniere" attending the event.

Afterwards, vice admiral José María Núñez Torrente visited the frigate "Navarra", which was also docked in the port of Djibouti. He was honoured and then had a short meeting with a representation of the crew and the 38th rotation of the FHQ.