Italy will deploy warships to protect its commercial vessels through the Bab al-Mandeb strait, Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said, warning Rome would not wait for an EU decision.

INTELLIGENCE SUMMARY

Italy will deploy warships to protect its commercial vessels through the Bab al-Mandeb strait, Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said, warning Rome would not wait for an EU decision. “We have the capabilities to protect the passage,” Crosetto said, adding that Italy “must not allow bureaucratic delays in decision-making to exacerbate an already complex situation.”