Since December 2015 a highly-trained Lithuanian maritime protection team has been embarked on board the World Food Programme (WFP) ship, MSM Douro, to ensure her precious cargo of humanitarian aid reaches its destination in Somalia safely.
The maritime protection team is part of Lithuania’s contribution to Operation Atalanta, the European Union’s counter-piracy force that operates at sea off the coast of Somalia.
The Lithuanian team has sailed over 8,500 miles with MSM Douro and protected over 13,600 tonnes of humanitarian aid that is destined for the Somali people.
For most of the Lithuanian team this deployment with Operation Atalanta is their first outside of Europe. They live on board the WFP ship alongside her civilian crew.
By providing MSM Douro with around-the-clock protection, the European Union is helping to ensure WFP aid reaches those Somali communities most in need.
