The government is investigating the desirability and possibility of deploying the air defence and command frigate HNLMS Evertsen defensively in the eastern Mediterranean. Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius (Defense) and Minister Berendsen (Foreign Affairs) reported this to the House of Representatives today.
The research is related to recent developments in the Middle East and Iran’s attacks on surrounding countries. On 3 March, the Netherlands received a request from France to support the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the eastern Mediterranean Sea with HNLMS Evertsen. The request of the French calls for defensive deployment. Both ships were recently in a broader fleet (carrier strike group, CSG) on readiness exercise in the Baltic Sea.
The cabinet is expected to decide in the short term. The House will be informed about this. In the meantime, HNLMS Evertsen is already heading for the Mediterranean, together with the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle.