(Bloomberg) — Two countries have shown interest in sending ships to help counter Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, according to Kaja Kallas, a top diplomat from the European Union.
Kallas has been urging nations to commit more resources to an EU mission in the Red Sea known as Operation Aspides, which aims to protect commercial ships from the Iran-supported Houthi militia. She noted that increasing Houthi attacks have hindered the mission’s effectiveness.
“We need more vessels because there are commercial ships waiting for escorts, and we simply do not have enough frigates available,” she commented on Monday after a meeting with EU defense ministers in Brussels.
During this meeting, she mentioned, “two countries hinted that they might send additional vessels,” but did not reveal their names.
This interest suggests that EU nations might be reconsidering their support for the Red Sea mission. France has already dispatched an additional frigate and has urged other countries to follow suit. However, there has been a long-standing hesitation to get more involved in the conflict related to Iran.
The issue has become urgent for the EU after the Houthis have gained ground in Yemen and started targeting Saudi Arabia’s energy facilities. These attacks have raised concerns about further disruptions to fuel supplies, which are already strained because of the Iran conflict. France has announced it will send troops and radar systems, while the UK has offered aircraft support.
Nevertheless, EU nations have yet to reinforce Operation Aspides. On Monday, Kallas suggested that they might use resources that have already been allocated but not deployed for a proposed “coalition of the willing” mission in the Strait of Hormuz, which has not yet come to fruition.
“There are many ships that have been offered to this coalition, but it is not currently operational,” she stated.
In April, European powers like France and the UK formed this coalition to help protect shipping routes in Hormuz. However, the mission has struggled to come together, with some nations insisting that fighting needs to cease first or that Iran must grant permission—conditions that Gulf states have criticized as unattainable.
The recent Houthi attacks have reignited this debate.
Sending ships to the Red Sea might be more acceptable to EU countries, considering that the Aspides mission is already operational there and has a mandate to address Houthi threats. Keeping vessels in the Red Sea would also allow Europe to avoid direct conflict with Iran.
In a recent interview with Journal du Dimanche, French Defense Minister Catherine Vautrin called for other nations to support the mission.
Kallas similarly urged countries last week to contribute more resources to Aspides, which started in 2024 and mainly consists of three ships from Italy and Greece patrolling the Red Sea. It was indicated that the mission needs at least 10 ships from the outset, but most countries have been slow to meet this target.
The Houthi attacks have made Europe increasingly worried about another energy crisis. The Iran conflict has already driven up energy prices and increased inflation in Europe, prompting the European Central Bank to raise borrowing costs twice. Meanwhile, consumer prices rose over 3% in August—an almost three-year high that is expected to remain elevated in the coming months.