His Excellency the Ambassador of Spain to Egypt, Mr. Álvaro Iranzo Gutiérrez, embarks on the frigate “Reina Sofía”

• His Excellency the Spanish Ambassador to Egypt, Mr. Álvaro Iranzo Gutiérrez, embarks on board the frigate "Reina Sofía", the command vessel of Atalanta Operation, as it enters the area of operations during the crossing of the Suez Canal

On 18 February, the frigate "Reina Sofia", command vessel EUNAVFOR Atalanta Operation, was visited on board by the Spanish Ambassador to Egypt, H.E. Mr. Álvaro Iranzo Gutiérrez. The Ambassador embarked in the port of Ismailia and made the transit through the Canal to Suez. After being received on board with the honours of orderly conduct, he was given a tour of the vessel during which he was shown the capabilities of the platform and visited different compartments, in addition to receiving explanations about its characteristics and its capabilities related to the tasks it is carrying out in the Operation. He also visited the facilities of the Atalanta Force Staff, where he was given an overview of the status and missions of EUNAVFOR Atalanta.

The vessel, which left the Rota Naval Base on 9 February, has been deployed for EUNAVFOR Atalanta Operation since 15 February and will remain in the area of operations until 15 June. The "Reina Sofía", under the command of CF Juan José Belizón Izquierdo, has a crew of 166 personnel, which is joined by 19 from the operation's Force Headquarters, commanded by CN Juan María Ibáñez Martín.