The Minister of Defence, Margarita Robles, has ordered the temporary withdrawal of the Spanish frigate Méndez Núñez (F-104), with 215 sailors on board, from the combat group led by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.
The acting Spanish government has ordered the “temporary measure of withdrawal of the frigate Méndez Núñez (F-104) from the combat group of the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln while it is in the Middle East,” sources from the Defence Ministry told the digital edition of El País.
The integration of Méndez Núñez into the US combat group – where there are no other non-US vessels — was planned at least a year ago. The fleet has already crossed the Strait of Bab el Mandeb, which links the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, and is heading for the Strait of Hormuz. On May 9, the group had sailed through the Suez Canal.