On 18 November, the EUROMARFOR SWG 21-2 meeting took place at the General Staff of the Portuguese Navy (Lisbon), attended by representatives of the Naval Staffs of the EUROMARFOR (EMF) nations as well as the staff of the EMF Permanent Cell, that is located in Spain (ALFLOT, Rota Naval Base).

The EUROMARFOR (EMF) Sub-working Group (SWG EMF), is in charge of EMF technical and organisational issues and conducting 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 Marina Militare Italiana as secretariat nation, discussed a number of issues, including the future employment of EUROMARFOR during the Spanish command as well as the plan of activities for the following years.

A particular focus was on the incoming activations for the 2022, the activities plan for the following 2 years and the development of an even more robust Maritime Situational Awareness through a stronger connection between the operational HQs of the four Fleet Commands. It was also focused on the proposal for the 2025 activity plan.

At the operational level, the Commander of the European Maritime Force (COMEUROMARFOR) is appointed every two years, being currently held since last September 22nd by the ALFLOT, Vice-almirante Eugenio Díaz del Rio Jáudenes.

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 plus a NCO for administrative support.

Since Spain has assumed command, EUROMARFOR has recently been activated during the FLOTEX 21 exercise, and is scheduled to be activated again, during the SEA BIT 21 exercise, next December.