Italy ‘not at war’ in Red Sea region, foreign minister says
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- Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Italy is “not at war” in the Red Sea despite a recent Houthi attack that reportedly damaged an Italian fighter jet.
- Tajani called on the EU to strengthen its naval mission protecting commercial shipping through the strategic waterway.
Italy is “not at war” in the Red Sea, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said, while urging the European Union to strengthen its naval mission protecting merchant shipping in the strategic waterway.
“No, we are not at war,” Tajani told Italian daily Corriere della Sera when asked about a recent attack involving an Italian fighter jet and Houthi statements that the group is not at war with Italy.
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His comments followed a Houthi strike on the Taif airbase in Saudi Arabia, which reportedly damaged an Italian F-2000 Eurofighter aircraft on the ground.
The European Union’s Aspides mission was established as a defensive operation to protect merchant ships transiting the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab from potential Houthi attacks.
Tajani said Italy would continue supporting the mission “in the face of the worsening situation in the strait” and called for its renewal and strengthening by the EU.
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“We have a strong strategic interest: 40 percent of Italy’s entire commercial maritime traffic and 60 percent of the goods we export to Asia pass through the Red Sea,” Tajani said.
