The Esquerra Unida (United Left) yesterday expressed their opposition to the presence of the Canadian warship HMCS Halifax in Palma.
The party criticised the fact that the ship will be in Palma until tomorrow and reiterated a previously made rejection of warships being in Balearics waters.
“We want the Balearic Islands to be considered places of peace in the Mediterranean. Only with the absence of military forces can we approach being a society that is firmly committed to peace.”
The United Left’s coordinator in the Balearics, Juanjo Martínez, observed that “no military component has been designed in order to bring about peace, only to make war”.
The Canadian frigate HMCS Halifax docked in Palma on Tuesday for a 3 day stopover.
The frigate’s keel was laid down on 19 March 1987 by Saint John Shipbuilding Ltd. at Saint John, New Brunswick. The first warship constructed in Canada since 1971, the vessel was launched on 30 April 1988.
HMCS Halifax is currently taking part in Operation Reassurance. Started in 2014, Operation Reassurance is a NATO initiative that is part of their defence strategy focusing on deterrence. The Canadian Armed Forces is one of the Allied countries that participate in this operation, which takes place on land, sea and air.