I svensk media har man som vanligt missat den intressanta vinkeln att det är en EU-flotta under brittiska befäl med svenskt deltagande som skickas till den somaliska kusten. Inte NATO, eller USA utan EU som agerar utanför EUs kuster.
Att EU håller på och utvecklar sin egen militära kapaciten är klart sedan länge. Vad som borde diskuteras i Sverige är vår roll där.
UK to lead EU anti-piracy force off Somalia – Telegraph
The Eunavor force – made up of at least seven ships, including three frigates, a supply vessel and support from surveillance aircraft – will be commanded by Royal Navy Vice-Admiral Philip Jones of Britain’s Permanent Joint Headquarters at Northwood.
”Our participation in the Somalia project is an important one,” said David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary.
Mr Morin revealed that Britain had initially been ”a bit hesitant” when he asked the Royal Navy to head the mission last month, describing European naval co-operation as not ”a great priority” for Britain.
But he added: ”Britain is a great maritime power. It is a nice symbol that this operation be commanded by a British officer and from a British headquarters. It is a good symbol of the evolution in European defence, and I would say, of its coming of age.”
Geoffrey Van Orden, Conservative Euro-MP and Tory defence spokesman in Europe, has questioned the motive behind an EU-led naval mission when EU countries are already contributing ships for Nato’s anti-piracy operations in the area.
”Nato is best able to mount such an operation on behalf of the UN,” he said.
”The EU is desperate to find military operations that it can stick its flag on in order to give credibility to its defence pretensions.”
Contributions to the EU naval force will also come from France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands and Spain, with Portugal, Sweden and non-EU nation Norway also likely to take part.