UAE to host Europe-led Gulf maritime mission – France

A European-led maritime mission to monitor Gulf waters will be stationed at the French naval base in Abu Dhabi, the French defense minister has said. Tensions in the Gulf have escalated since May, following a string of attacks on oil tankers that the US and its allies blamed on Tehran. Iran denies the charges.

“We formally agreed that the command center of the European maritime surveillance initiative will be on UAE territory,” French Defense Minister Florence Parly told AFP on Sunday.

It will be run by around 10 to 15 staff members deployed at the French naval base in Abu Dhabi, who will “contribute to making maritime navigation in the Gulf as safe as possible,” she said on a visit to the base.

Parly did not identify the countries that would be joining the mission, saying that some were still waiting for their respective parliaments to ratify their participation in the initiative.