What is Operation Aspides, the EU naval shield now at the centre of Strait of Hormuz reopening talks

A waterway carrying one in five barrels of the world's crude oil has been effectively shut. Iranian forces have planted mines, attacked ships, and blockaded the Strait of Hormuz following US and Israeli airstrikes on Tehran. Oil prices have surged past $105 a barrel and now Europe faces a defining question: should it expand its existing naval mission beyond the Red Sea or watch energy markets spiral further out of control?

EU foreign ministers met in Brussels today, to debate exactly that. At the centre of the discussion is a two-year-old naval operation—Operation Aspides.

Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas said Monday that the bloc could expand its Aspides naval mission into the Persian Gulf, or alternatively form a "coalition of the willing" with member nations contributing military capacity on an ad hoc basis.


Also Read: Operation Aspides: EU to discuss extending naval mission to Strait of Hormuz

Speaking to journalists ahead of the talks, Kallas said: "It is in our interest to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, and that's why we are also discussing what we can do in this regard." She added that changing the existing Aspides mandate would be the "fastest" route, rather than building an entirely new mission from scratch.

But Europe is divided. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul ruled out German participation, saying he did not see an immediate need and called on the United States and Israel to provide clarity about their objectives in the war on Iran.

Any change to the Aspides mandate requires the approval of all 27 EU member states, a high bar.

France, meanwhile, has moved ahead independently. President Emmanuel Macron announced on March 9 that France and several other states were setting up a "purely defensive" escort mission for merchant ships transiting the strait, under the Aspides framework, and that France is sending a dozen ships to the wider Middle East region.

While nothing significant was decided in this meeting, EU’s naval mission remains significant to the potential reopening of the world's most strategically important choke points.

On Sunday, US President Donald Trump urged NATO allies to help reopen the strait, and on Monday said he had demanded approximately seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open as Iranian strikes continued.

Kallas also raised the possibility of replicating the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the wartime deal that allowed grain exports out of Ukraine as a possible diplomatic model to unblock oil and gas transit through the strait.

What is Operation Aspides and can it reopen the Strait of Hormuz?

Operation Aspides, formally EUNAVFOR ASPIDES, from the Greek, meaning "shields" was launched on February 19, 2024, as the EU's military response to a different but related crisis: Houthi rebel attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

The Houthis, a Yemen-based armed group backed by Iran, began targeting cargo vessels after the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza conflict in October 2023.

The attacks disrupted one of the world's busiest trade corridors, sent shipping insurance costs soaring, and forced dozens of major carriers to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope adding weeks and millions of dollars to each voyage.

The mission has three core functions: accompanying vessels through its area of operations, collecting intelligence on arms trafficking and shadow fleets, and defending ships against multi-domain attacks, including drones, missiles, and drone boats.

It operates in line with UN Security Council Resolutions 2272/2024 and 2768/2025. Its operational command centre is based in Larissa, Greece.

One critical constraint defines the mission: it is purely defensive. Warships are authorised to open fire only if attacked first. The operation will not conduct land strikes under any circumstances.

What has it achieved in the last two years?

In its first year, Aspides escorted over 640 merchant vessels, with more than 370 receiving close-protection accompaniment. It destroyed four ballistic missiles, 18 UAVs, and 20 drone boats. It rescued 50 seafarers from stricken vessels. It also systematically debunked Houthi propaganda, finding 56% of claimed victories to be entirely false.

The mission currently fields three warships on station, one French, one Greek, and one Italian. The EU Council extended the mandate in early 2026 until February 28, 2027, with a financial allocation of nearly €15 million for the coming year.

Aspides provides its escort services to international shipping at no charge, the cost is borne entirely by contributing EU member states.

Strait of Hormuz closure

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman connecting the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea. Around 20% of the world's oil and a significant share of liquefied natural gas passes through it daily. There is no viable alternative route for most Gulf oil exporters making it arguably the single most consequential chokepoint in global trade.

The crisis was triggered on February 28, 2026, when the United States and Israel launched coordinated airstrikes on Iran, targeting military facilities, nuclear sites, and leadership. The strikes resulted in the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iran's response was swift and severe.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued warnings prohibiting vessel passage through the strait. Tanker traffic dropped first by approximately 70%, with over 150 ships anchoring outside the waterway. Traffic then fell to near zero.

Similarly, the Red Sea holds immense importance for this naval mission. The Red Sea is a semi-enclosed inlet of the Indian Ocean, stretching approximately 2,250 km between the African and Asian continents. To the south, it connects to the Arabian Sea via the Gulf of Aden and the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the gateway Aspides was originally built to protect. To the north, the Suez Canal links it to the Mediterranean, making it the fastest maritime route between Europe and Asia.

The sea spans roughly 438,000 sq km, with a maximum width of 355 km and a deepest point of 3,040 m. It is bordered by Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, and Djibouti to the west, and by Yemen and Saudi Arabia to the east. Any sustained disruption to shipping through this corridor raises costs for goods moving between continents, a lesson learned sharply since late 2023.

On March 10, US military intelligence reported that Iran had begun planting naval mines in the strait. A large wave of attacks on vessels followed on March 11, with at least three ships sustaining damage.

By Monday, Brent crude was trading near $105 per barrel. Kallas called the disruption "really dangerous," warning it could affect fertiliser production globally and potentially trigger food shortages by 2027.