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From: B-Haile (eritrea.lave@comhem.se)
Date: Tue Mar 01 2011 - 14:27:37 EST
'Eritrea:
The Eritrean Navy, which has its headquarters in Massawa, is made up of Israeli Super Dvora MkII patrol boats and Soviet Osa II class patrol boats. Remarkable about the Eritrean naval infrastructure is the presence of a modern naval base, or at least the dock of one, located at 13° 13' 5.94" N 42° 31' 36.90" E. Eritrea itself does not own a navy with ships large enough to benefit from this infrastructure. Due to the close cooperation between Eritrea and Iran there is always a possibility this infrastructure could be used by Iran in the future to establish a permanent presence in the Red Sea.'
The Geopolitical and Conflict Report
The Naval Balance of Power: The Red Sea
Written by Frederik Van Lokeren
Monday, 28 February 2011 03:16
As part of a new series of features, items will appear in the future on the topic of maritime activity within defined theaters. The first of the series studies the naval powers located around the Red Sea and the implications of each country's objectives and capabilities. The Red Sea is probably one of the most important maritime zones in the world when it comes to sustaining the world economy. The overall peaceful economic perception of the Red Sea easily hides the underlying military struggles between the countries bordering this strategic region.
The Red Sea is one of the most important trade routes in the world. It is through the Red Sea that the main transport route of fossil fuels from the Persian Gulf runs to the western economies. Besides this the Red Sea also connects the western markets of the European Union with the markets of the Far East. The Red Sea is bordered on every side by narrow naval choke points, the Suez Canal in the north and the Bab el Mandeb strait in the south. Several different countries border this essential maritime economical lifeline; Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Yemen and Jordan. The navies of Sudan and Jordan are relatively insignificant due to their limitations in technology and size, as well as due to the lack of their political relevance in the Red Sea. Apart from these local navies, the Red Sea also houses the Combined Task Force 151 (CTF 151), the international naval force that is focused on the disruption of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and along the coast of Somalia. There have also been sporadic reports of Iranian and Israeli presence in these waters. If tensions between Iran and Israel were to escalate, the Red Sea could very well become the theater of naval skirmishes between them.
Egypt:
Egypt controls the northern access to the Red Sea through its possession of the Suez Canal. In theory, this means that Egypt has the ability to block all traffic passing through the Suez Canal and thus the Red Sea. It is extremely unlikely that Egypt would ever reach for such measures, considering the aftermath of the Suez crisis in the 1950's. The Egyptian navy's combat capability is currently concentrated around a frigate fleet which consists of 4 'Oliver Hazard Perry' class frigates as well as 2 'Knox' class frigates. While these frigates make up the modern fighting force of the Egyptian Navy, it also still has 5 older Chinese and Yugoslavian frigates in service. Apart from these surface ships, Egypt also possesses 4 improved Romeo class submarines. The larger share of the Egyptian navy consists of patrol boats equipped with missiles. This fleet is mainly fit for littoral operations, making the protection of the Egyptian coast their first and foremost duty. The larger ships in the Egyptian fleet are mainly stationed in the Mediterranean, where they form a counterweight to the presence of the Turkish and Israeli fleets. The control over the Suez Canal, however, allows Egypt to quickly shift parts of its fleet between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea.
Eritrea:
The Eritrean Navy, which has its headquarters in Massawa, is made up of Israeli Super Dvora MkII patrol boats and Soviet Osa II class patrol boats. Remarkable about the Eritrean naval infrastructure is the presence of a modern naval base, or at least the dock of one, located at 13° 13' 5.94" N 42° 31' 36.90" E. Eritrea itself does not own a navy with ships large enough to benefit from this infrastructure. Due to the close cooperation between Eritrea and Iran there is always a possibility this infrastructure could be used by Iran in the future to establish a permanent presence in the Red Sea.
Djibouti and CTF 151:
While Djibouti's navy itself is of not much political or military importance, the small country is the safe haven for the Combined Task Force 151. CTF 151 is a multinational task force, established in 2009, tasked with combating piracy in the Horn of Africa region. The command of CTF 151 rotates frequently between its members. The current commander of CTF 151 is Commodore Abdul Aleem of the Pakistani navy. The mandate of CTF 151, however, is concerned with activities in the Horn of African region which is outside of the Red Sea itself. Although CTF 151 does not play an active political role within the Red Sea, its presence has a stabilizing influence as it improves the safety of trade ships leaving or en route to the Red Sea through the Bab el Mandeb strait.
Yemen:
The main strength of the Yemeni navy consists of 2 Trantul I class corvettes and 8 Osa class missile boats, both were procured from the former Soviet Union. Apart from these ships, Yemen also has many patrol boats under its control. Yemen's navy is mostly occupied with coastal protection and anti-smuggling operations. The evolution of piracy during the last few years has also put anti-piracy operations in Yemen's coastal waters on top of the navy's agenda. This last of these objectives ensure Yemen's navy is mostly aimed at the waters around the Horn of Africa. Within the Red Sea itself territorial claims pit Yemen against Eritrea over the Zukur-Hanish archipelago. Even though the archipelago was established as part of Yemen in 1998, there is still a possibility that Eritrea may at some point enforce its claim of the islands. If this happens, taking the relative size and strength of both involved navies into account, this could only lead to minor skirmishes at sea.
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia is one of the important regional powers in the Middle East. The rise of Iran as a new regional military power, as well as security evolutions in the area, has forced Saudi Arabia to focus its naval strength on the Persian Gulf to counter the Iranian presence there. The Arabian navy currently has 3 Al Riyad class frigates which are a modern version of the French La Fayette class, 4 Al Medinah class frigates and 4 Badr class corvettes. The latter two classes of ships were constructed during the 1980's. The ships in the Al Medinah class are stationed in the Red Sea naval base of Jeddah. Apart from these frigates and corvettes, of course, the Saudi Arabian navy also fields smaller patrol boats and minesweepers.
Israel:
The Israeli navy consists of 5 Sa'ar 5 class corvetters, 8 Sa'ar 4.5 class missile boats also known as the Hetz subclass, and 3 modernized Dolphin class submarines. Apart from these ships Israel also possesses the usual array of patrol boats. Israel is dependent on its overseas trade, and the focus of the Israeli navy is therefore completely on operations in the Mediterranean. The Israeli navy can not spare any of its important ships as it has its hands full with countering threats from Hezbollah and Syria, while also maintaining the blockade of the Gaza strip. Israel, however, does have a constant presence in the Red Sea. The patrol boats of Unit 915 are based in the harbor of Eilat. Tensions between Iran and Israel could force Israel to maintain a larger presence in the Red Sea. As Iran is a growing power in the Middle East it is starting to appear more actively in the Red Sea. During June 2009 Israel moved one of its Dolphin class submarines through the Suez Canal to take part in an exercise in the Red Sea as a warning to Iran. At this very moment the Iranian Alvand corvette, accompanied by a supports hip, is based in the Mediterranean after passing through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. Even though the Alvand was only passing by on its way to what Tehran describes as a year-long exercise based out of the Syrian harbor of Latakia, this show that both countries are new perfectly able to operate in each other's waters. If the tension between both countries were to escalate in the future, we could see a heightened activity of both Israeli and Iranian vessels in the Red Sea. As the Israeli navy has its duties to fulfill in the Mediterranean, an important question is whether Israel will be able to shift enough of its navy to the Red Sea in order to counter the growing Iranian naval activity in these waters.
http://gcreport.com/index.php/analysis/185-the-naval-balance-of-power-the-red-sea
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