EUROMARFOR Sub-working Group 24-1 meeting took place on 17th and 18th of April at the Italian Fleet Command Headquarters in Rome, attended by representatives of the Naval Staffs of the EUROMARFOR (EMF) nations as well as the staff of the EMF Permanent Cell, which is located in the Italian Fleet HQs, Santa Rosa (Rome).
The EUROMARFOR (EMF) Sub-working Group (SWG EMF) is in charge of EMF technical and organizational issues and conduct studies on specific topics, while helping to support the decision-making process of the EMF Political Military Working Group (POLMIL WG).
The meeting, chaired by the Spanish Navy as secretariat nation, discussed a number of issues, including the current and future employment of EUROMARFOR during the Italian Command (2023-2025) as well as the plan of activities for the following years.
A particular focus was on the incoming activations for the current year as well as the Activity Plan 2025 – 2027, that aim at developing an strong presence in the Wider Mediterranean Sea.
EMF will continue working to further develop the interoperability among units and personnel thus ensuring the maritime security through an info sharing among the EMF Navies operational HQs as well as an endless cooperation with other international organizations, namely EU and NATO.
At the operational level, the Commander of the European Maritime Force (COMEUROMARFOR) is appointed every two years, being currently held since last September 26th by the Commander in Chief of the Italian Fleet, Vice Admiral Aurelio DE CAROLIS.
The COMEUROMARFOR (CEMF) relies on both its national staff and the EMF Permanent Cell (EMF PC) for the planning / execution of the assigned tasks. The EMF PC is composed of a Director, who is a Captain/Colonel of the CEMF nationality, and four national representatives (Commander or Lieutenant Commander) from each EMF Nation.
Since Italy has assumed Command, EUROMARFOR has been activated during the exercises MARE APERTO 23-2, DIVEX 24, OLIVES NOIRES 24 and twice in the Gulf of Guinea.
