Following the drone attack on the British RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus, several European countries have announced the deployment of naval and air assets to the Eastern Mediterranean to strengthen the island's defenses.
Greece sent two frigates — Kimon and Psara — along with four F-16 fighter jets, while France sent the frigate Languedoc, equipped with anti-missile and anti-drone systems.
On Thursday, Spain announced that it will send its most advanced Álvaro de Bazán-class frigate, the Cristóbal Colón, to join French and Greek forces in the Eastern Mediterranean, according to Euronews.
The Spanish frigate, which had been training alongside the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the Baltic Sea, is expected to arrive near Crete next week.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said Italy would join France, Spain and the Netherlands in sending naval assets to help Cyprus, adding that the countries agreed that "within the EU it made sense to send a message of support to Cyprus."
The President of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, confirmed Italy's participation and thanked Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for the decision.
The Netherlands is preparing to send the frigate HNLMS Evertsen along with the French aircraft carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean.
The United Kingdom had announced on Tuesday the deployment of the Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon and two Wildcat helicopters armed with Martlet missiles to strengthen defenses against drones.
British Defense Secretary John Healey arrived in Cyprus on Thursday to discuss with his Cypriot counterpart Vassilis Palmas ways to further strengthen air defense.
The alarm was activated at around 11pm on Wednesday in Akrotiri, with authorities sending warnings via mobile phones of a possible threat, but it was later confirmed that there was no identified danger.
Meanwhile, a suspicious object was detected near Lebanese airspace, forcing Greece to scramble F-16s from Paphos; the alert was canceled after more than an hour.
