⚡️🇪🇺🇾🇪 — EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas stated Monday that the EU’s Red Sea naval mission, Operation Aspides, urgently needs to expand beyond 10 warships, while diplomats confirm its current strength is limited to six vessels. Kallas emphasized that the original operational baseline required at least 10 ships and warned that "the situation, I think, is even more grave right now" due to escalated threat levels from Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis affecting global supply chains and economies hit by rising fuel prices — Reuters.

➡️ In an official letter dispatched to the 27 EU member states on September 19, Kallas formally requested an increase in naval and air assets, an issue slated for upcoming defense and foreign ministers' meetings. Highlighting the friction within the European command framework, Italy—a core Aspides contributor—announced Thursday it is preparing an independent unilateral naval mission for its own vessels, declaring it could not wait for a centralized EU response to the developing crisis.

➡️ Strategically, Kallas noted that despite Houthi communications claiming they would exclusively target Saudi-linked interests, high uncertainty remains regarding their operational course of action toward commercial vessels transiting the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The EU intelligence assessment concludes that Houthi forces have enhanced their asymmetric capabilities and are now in a significantly better position to disrupt maritime shipping lanes.

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