View source for Operation Sharp Guard

{{short description|Naval blockade of Adriatic, 1993–96}}
{{operational plan
|name = Operation Sharp Guard
|partof =[[NATO intervention in Bosnia]]
|image= Nato Ships.jpg
|caption = NATO ships enforcing the blockade
|objective = Blockade former [[Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]]
|date = 15 June 1993 – 2 October 1996
|executed_by = [[File:Flag of the Western European Union (1993-1995).svg|20px]] [[Western European Union]]<br />{{flag|NATO}}
}}
{{Campaignbox NATO intervention in Bosnia}}
'''Operation Sharp Guard''' was a multi-year joint naval [[blockade]] in the [[Adriatic Sea]] by [[NATO]] and the [[Western European Union]] on shipments to the former [[Yugoslavia]].<ref name="google1">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4ubWqD1XcAQC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA172|title=Naval coalition warfare: from the Napoleonic War to Operation Iraqi Freedom|author=Bruce A. Elleman|author2=S. C. M. Paine|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-77082-8|year=2007|access-date=June 7, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201930/https://books.google.com/books?id=4ubWqD1XcAQC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA172|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="independent1">{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/naval-blockade-lifts-in-adriatic-1337903.html |title=Naval blockade lifts in Adriatic |author=Christopher Bellamy |work=[[The Independent]] |date=June 20, 1996 |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=November 8, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121108002042/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/naval-blockade-lifts-in-adriatic-1337903.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>[http://docs.newsbank.com/g/GooglePM/NR/lib00472,0F574E769146EAE6.html "U.S. Draws Criticism for Drawing out of Bosnia Blockade"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220307030532/https://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=NR&d_origin=transcripts&z=NR&p_theme=nr&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0F574E769146EAE6&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |date=2022-03-07 }}, NPR, November 13, 1994</ref><ref name="def">{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/americandefensep00pete |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/americandefensep00pete/page/533 533] |quote=operation sharp guard. |title=American Defense Policy|author=Peter L. Hays|author2=Brenda J. Vallance|author3=Alan R. Van Tassel|publisher=JHU Press|isbn=0-8018-5473-3|year=1997 |access-date=June 7, 2010}}</ref> Warships and maritime patrol aircraft from 14 countries were involved in searching for and stopping [[blockade runner]]s. The operation began on 15 June 1993. It was suspended on 19 June 1996, and was terminated on 2 October 1996.

==Background==

The operation replaced naval blockades [[Operation Maritime Guard]] (of NATO; begun by the U.S. in November 1992) and Sharp Fence (of the WEU).<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lMfuht7crW4C&q=sharp+guard&pg=PA174|title=America's Global Advantage: US Hegemony and International Cooperation|author=Carla Norrlof|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-74938-1|year=2010|access-date=June 7, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201930/https://books.google.com/books?id=lMfuht7crW4C&q=sharp+guard&pg=PA174|url-status=live}}</ref> It put them under a single chain of command and control (the "Adriatic Military Committee", over which the NATO and WEU Councils exerted joint control), to address what their respective Councils viewed as wasteful duplication of effort.<ref name="google1"/><ref name="independent1"/><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-rZZW2xuaysC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA146|title=Challenges for the new peacekeepers|author=Trevor Findlay|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0-19-829199-X|year=1996|access-date=June 7, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201931/https://books.google.com/books?id=-rZZW2xuaysC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA146|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=djyivTHeZYYC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA214|title=The elusive quest for European security: from EDC to CFSP|author=Simon Duke|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=0-312-22402-8|year=2000|access-date=June 7, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201931/https://books.google.com/books?id=djyivTHeZYYC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA214|url-status=live}}</ref> Some maintain that despite the nominal official joint command and control of the operation, in reality it was NATO staff that ran the operation.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UhT4G7aXK9oC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA58|title=NATO's 'peace-enforcement' tasks and 'policy communities,' 1990-1999|author=Giovanna Bono|publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.|isbn=0-7546-0944-8|year=2003|access-date=June 7, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201932/https://books.google.com/books?id=UhT4G7aXK9oC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA58|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KxuQSfPJeEoC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA170|title=German foreign policy since unification: theories and case studies|author=Volker Rittberger|publisher=Manchester University Press|isbn=0-7190-6040-0|year=2001|access-date=June 8, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201932/https://books.google.com/books?id=KxuQSfPJeEoC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA170|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Purpose==
The operation's purpose was, through a blockade on shipments to the former Yugoslavia,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/jan-june10/gaza2_06-02.html |author=Judy Woodruf |title=As Flotilla Inquiry Calls Grow Louder, Legality of Gaza Blockade Examined |publisher=[[PBS NewsHour]] |date=June 2, 2010 |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=June 18, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110618074013/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/jan-june10/gaza2_06-02.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> to enforce economic sanctions and an [[weapon|arms]] [[embargo]] of weapons and military equipment against the former [[Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]], and rival factions in [[Croatia]] and [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia]].<ref name="autogeneratedmil">[https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA328118.pdf Kathleen M. Reddy, "Operation Sharp Guard:  Lesson Learned for the Policymaker and Commander"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121002191429/http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA328118&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf |date=2012-10-02 }}, June 13, 1997, retrieved June 7, 2010</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-67138475.html?refid=gnews_1108 |title=Analysis: NATO's predecessor about to go out of business. |publisher=United Press International  |date=November 20, 2000 |access-date=June 7, 2010}}{{dead link|date=February 2019|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref name="google3">{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/americannavalhis0003swee |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/americannavalhis0003swee/page/292 292] |quote=operation sharp guard. |title=American naval history: an illustrated chronology of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, 1775-present|author=Jack Sweetman|publisher=Naval Institute Press|isbn=1-55750-867-4|year= 2002|access-date=June 7, 2010}}</ref>  The [[Yugoslav Wars]] were being waged, and the participants of the blockade hoped to limit the fighting and destruction by limiting supplies being imported into the area.

==Blockade==
Fourteen nations contributed ships and patrol aircraft to the operation. At any given time, 22 ships and 8 aircraft were enforcing the blockade, with ships from [[Standing Naval Force Atlantic]] and [[Standing Naval Force Mediterranean]] establishing a rotating duty.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ROlQUFZIpoC&q=%22sharp+guard%22+-operation-sharp-guard&pg=PA216|title=The United Nations Security Council and war: the evolution of thought and practice since 1945|author=Vaughan Lowe|author2=Adam Roberts|author3=Jennifer Welsh|publisher=Oxford University Press US|isbn=978-0-19-953343-5|year=2008|access-date=June 9, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201933/https://books.google.com/books?id=5ROlQUFZIpoC&q=%22sharp+guard%22+-operation-sharp-guard&pg=PA216|url-status=live}}</ref> (Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, the U.K., and the U.S.),<ref name="autogeneratedmil"/> and eight [[maritime patrol]] aircraft, were involved in searching for and stopping blockade runners.<ref name="independent1"/><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3pQpZm_V3N8C&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA65|title=Putting teeth in the tiger: improving the effectiveness of arms embargoes|author=Michael Brzoska|author2=George A. Lopez|publisher=Emerald Group Publishing|isbn=978-1-84855-202-9|year=2009|access-date=June 8, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201933/https://books.google.com/books?id=3pQpZm_V3N8C&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA65|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YWS92WULujwC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA55|title=Germany, pacifism and peace enforcement; Europe in change|author=Anja Dalgaard-Nielsen|publisher=Manchester University Press|isbn=0-7190-7268-9|year=2006|access-date=June 8, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201934/https://books.google.com/books?id=YWS92WULujwC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA55|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="google4">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ayXnBkk3UZkC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA21|title=The role of European naval forces after the Cold War|author=G. C. de Nooy|publisher=Martinus Nijhoff Publishers|isbn=90-411-0227-2|year=1996|access-date=June 7, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201936/https://books.google.com/books?id=ayXnBkk3UZkC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA21|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Op1Pj0UGIGAC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA175|title=Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida, 1940-2000: An Illustrated History|author=Ronald M. Williamson|publisher=Turner Publishing Company|isbn=1-56311-730-4|year=2000|access-date=June 7, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201935/https://books.google.com/books?id=Op1Pj0UGIGAC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA175|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DLYyYUaue8gC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA315 |title=The Canadian way of war: serving the national interest |author=Bernd Horn |publisher=Dundurn Press Ltd. |isbn=1-55002-612-7 |year=2006 |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=March 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201959/https://books.google.com/books?id=DLYyYUaue8gC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA315 |url-status=live }}</ref>
Most contributors to the operation supplied one or two ships.<ref name="google4"/> The [[Turkish Navy]], for example, participated with frigates, submarines, and tankers.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mvjm82mAKfkC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA191 |title=War and change in the Balkans: nationalism, conflict and cooperation |author=Brad K. Blitz |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=0-521-67773-4 |year=2006 |access-date=June 8, 2010 |archive-date=March 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320202005/https://books.google.com/books?id=Mvjm82mAKfkC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA191 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ICzcJIzytVIC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA181 |title=Contentious issues of security and the future of Turkey |author=Nurşin Ateşoğlu Güney |publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. |isbn=978-0-7546-4931-1 |year=2007 |access-date=June 8, 2010 |archive-date=March 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320201959/https://books.google.com/books?id=ICzcJIzytVIC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA181 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Zeffiro (F577) Beirut.jpg|alt=|thumb|196x196px|Italian frigate ''Zeffiro'']]
The operational area was divided into a series of "sea boxes", each the responsibility of a single warship.<ref name="autogeneratedmil"/>  Each boarding team was composed of a "guard team" to board and wrest control of the target ship, and a "search team", to conduct the search.<ref name="autogeneratedmil"/>

The ships were authorized to board, inspect, and seize both ships seeking to break the blockade and their cargo.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L1i6EyQTTgkC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA229|title=UN peacekeeping, American politics, and the uncivil wars of the 1990s|author=William J. Durch|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=0-312-16075-5|year=1996|access-date=June 8, 2010|archive-date=March 20, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320202000/https://books.google.com/books?id=L1i6EyQTTgkC&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&pg=PA229|url-status=live}}</ref>  The Combined Task Force 440 was commanded by Admiral Mario Angeli of Italy.<ref name="independent1"/>  It marked the first time since its founding in 1949 that NATO was involved in combat operations.<ref name="def"/>

=== ''Jadran Express'' incident ===
On 11 March 1994, a combined British and Italian intelligence operation led to the capture of the [[Malta|Maltese]] merchant ship ''Jadran Express'' by the [[Maestrale-class frigate|Italian frigate ''Zeffiro'']], which forced the freighter into the port of [[Taranto]]. The ship had departed from [[Odessa]] bound to [[Venice]] with a cache of 2,000 tons of Soviet-designed weaponry, valued at US$200 million. Manned by a [[boarding party]] of Italian marines from the [[1st San Marco Regiment|San Marco battalion]], the ''Jadran Express'' was eventually escorted by ''Zeffiro'' to the naval base of [[La Maddalena]], where her cargo was unloaded under heavy security.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://ricerca.gelocal.it/lanuovasardegna/archivio/lanuovasardegna/2001/04/21/SL201.html|title=Le armi di Zhukov in un deposito a Santo Stefano Erano a bordo della nave Jadran Express fermata nel 1994 nel canale di Otranto - La Nuova Sardegna|work=Archivio - La Nuova Sardegna|access-date=2018-09-02|language=it|archive-date=2018-09-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180902091440/http://ricerca.gelocal.it/lanuovasardegna/archivio/lanuovasardegna/2001/04/21/SL201.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===''Lido II'' incident===
[[File:HMS Chatham (F87).jpg|thumb|left|[[Type 22 frigate]] HMS ''Chatham''|alt=]]
The issue of differing views among nations in the coalition as to the use of force authorized by [[rules of engagement]] arose in April 1994.<ref name="autogenerated1">[https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:F_ONTCuK06YJ:www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc%3FAD%3DADA293881+%22Stacey+A.+Poe%22&hl=en&gl=ar&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShJGQWwrEREgEzVCnl_5SxcTLkRQi7xiuDSKk_MCMaHm7TbmjxMmQtcXxKwo9trG8EwyHhDMHYB12VdWCyisaID44n0gLhDUE6Y18P8vu-v5jsLnLZxHZcXhp0ziuVPOYB5lppK&sig=AHIEtbTlzmbn5k4PEqucgg-XUmk3y4mfaQ Stacey A. Poe, "Rules of Engagement: Complexities of Coalition Interaction in Military Operations Other than War"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202003757/https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache%3AF_ONTCuK06YJ%3Awww.dtic.mil%2Fcgi-bin%2FGetTRDoc%3FAD%3DADA293881+%22Stacey+A.+Poe%22&hl=en&gl=ar&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShJGQWwrEREgEzVCnl_5SxcTLkRQi7xiuDSKk_MCMaHm7TbmjxMmQtcXxKwo9trG8EwyHhDMHYB12VdWCyisaID44n0gLhDUE6Y18P8vu-v5jsLnLZxHZcXhp0ziuVPOYB5lppK&sig=AHIEtbTlzmbn5k4PEqucgg-XUmk3y4mfaQ |date=2017-02-02 }}, Faculty of the Nava War College, February 13, 1995</ref>  Faced with the Maltese tanker ''Lido II'' making its way towards a [[Montenegro|Montenegrin]] port with 45,000 tons of fuel oil, the American cruiser [[USS Philippine Sea (CG-58)|USS ''Philippine Sea'']] asked the NATO commander (a British [[Commodore (Royal Navy)|Commodore]]) for guidance, and received authorization to use "disabling fire" to stop the tanker, if necessary.<ref name="autogenerated1"/>  He received confirmation that he should follow the British commodore's guidance from his own higher authority.<ref name="autogenerated1"/> Under U.S. Navy standards, "disabling fire" means firing rounds into the ship's engineering space. The U.S. cruiser was about to pass the order along to the Dutch {{sclass|Kortenaer|frigate|1}} HNLMS ''Van Kinsbergen''. However, the fact that the Dutch definition of "disabling fire" involves launching rounds into the bridge of the target ship, with an increased risk of loss of life, became important.<ref name="autogenerated1"/> The ship was boarded by Dutch Marines inserted by helicopter from HNLMS ''Van Kinsbergen'' and eventually stopped without firing a shot on the first of May.<ref name="autogenerated1"/> Three [[Yugoslav Navy]] {{sclass|Končar|fast attack craft|0}} corvettes challenged the NATO operation and one of them tried to ram the British frigate {{HMS|Chatham|F87|6}} as it was assisting ''Van Kinsberger''. The corvettes eventually fled following the reaction of the British warship, supported by Italian [[Panavia Tornado|Tornado]] aircraft which scrambled from an airbase at [[Gioia Del Colle]]. ''Lido II'' had to undergo repairs before being diverted to Italy, since the crew had sabotaged the ship's engine room. The leaking was contained by an engineer party from HMS ''Chatham''. Seven Yugoslav stowaways,<ref name="OTAN" /><ref name=":0" />  all of them members of the special forces of the [[Yugoslav Navy (1992-2003)|Yugoslav Navy]],<ref name=":1" /> were found on board.<ref name=OTAN>"NATO and WEU ships encounter Yugoslav Navy while preventing violation of UN embargo". Press Release by NATO/WEU force conducting the Operation Sharp Guard in the Adriatic Sea, 1 May 1994. Release 94/13</ref><ref name=":0">McLaughlin, Rob (2009). ''United Nations Naval Peace Operations in the Territorial Sea''. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, p. 42, note 81. {{ISBN|90-04-17479-6}}</ref> A similar incident had taken place off [[Montenegro]] a year before, on 8 February 1993, when a boarding party from the Italian frigate ''[[Maestrale-class frigate|Espero]]'' forcibly seized the Maltese freighter ''Dimitrakis'', which feigned an emergency in order to divert her route to the port of [[Bar, Montenegro|Bar]]. The merchant was smuggling coal to the Serbs from [[Romania]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|url=https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/56775/ricerche.06-LaGuerraAsimmetrica.pdf|title=La guerra asimmetrica. Impiego delle forze aeronavali italiane nell'ambito di dispositivi joint & combined proiettati in teatri operativi lontani; composizione, sostenibilità logistica di un"Expeditionary Group"|last=Giorgerini|first=Giorgio|publisher=Centro Militare di Studi Strategici|year=2006|pages=52|language=it|access-date=2018-09-04|archive-date=2022-03-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320202008/https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/56775/ricerche.06-LaGuerraAsimmetrica.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Suspension===
[[File:HMS Nottingham D91.jpg|thumb|right|240px|{{HMS|Nottingham|D91|6}}]]
The blockade was suspended following a UN decision to end the arms embargo, and NATO's Southern Command said that: "NATO and WEU ships will no longer challenge, board or divert ships in the Adriatic".<ref name="independent1"/> ''[[The Independent]]'' warned at the time that "In theory, there could now be a massive influx of arms to Bosnia, Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), although senior military and diplomatic sources yesterday said that they thought this would be unlikely."<ref name="independent1"/>

NATO naval forces inspected 5800 ships at sea . Of them, 1400 were diverted and inspected in port. No vessels were reported as having broken the embargo, although six were seized while attempting to do so.<ref>{{Cite web |last=NATO |title=Operation Sharp Guard: Suspension of enforcement operations |url=http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_24911.htm |access-date=2024-04-12 |website=NATO |language=en}}</ref>

==Applicable UN resolutions==
The blockade was conducted in accordance with numerous [[United Nations Security Council Resolution]]s:  [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 713|UNSCR 713]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u910925a.htm |title=NATO/IFOR: UN Resolution S/RES/713 (1991) |publisher=NATO |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=January 25, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125121110/http://www.nato.int/IFOR/un/u910925a.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 757|UNSCR 757]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u920530a.htm |title=NATO/IFOR: UN Resolution S/RES/757 (1992) |publisher=NATO |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=March 29, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170329041909/http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u920530a.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 787|UNSCR 787]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u921116a.htm |title=NATO/IFOR: UN Resolution S/RES/787 (1992) |publisher=NATO |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=January 25, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125121125/http://www.nato.int/IFOR/un/u921116a.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 820|UNSCR 820]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u930417a.htm |title=NATO/IFOR: UN Resolution S/RES/820 (1993) |publisher=NATO |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=January 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100124215134/http://www.nato.int/IFOR/un/u930417a.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 943|UNSCR 943]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u940923c.htm |title=NATO/IFOR: UN Resolution S/RES/943 (1994) |publisher=NATO |date=September 23, 1994 |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=January 17, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100117180148/http://www.nato.int/IFOR/un/u940923c.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>  Resolution 787 authorized participating states to "use such measures ... as may be necessary ... to halt all inward and outward maritime shipping ... to insure strict implementation of" the arms embargo and economic sanctions against the former Yugoslavia.<ref name="google1"/>  Over the course of the operation, the blockade was redefined in accordance with [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1021|UNSCR 1021]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u951122a.htm |title=NATO/IFOR: UN Resolution S/RES/1021 (1995) |publisher=NATO |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=January 25, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125115246/http://www.nato.int/IFOR/un/u951122a.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1022|UNSCR 1022]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u951122b.htm |title=NATO/IFOR: UN Resolution S/RES/1022 (1995) |publisher=NATO |access-date=June 7, 2010 |archive-date=January 26, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100126020401/http://www.nato.int/IFOR/un/u951122b.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Ships participating (Extract)==
{{Div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Belgian Navy]]:
** {{ship|Belgian frigate|Westhinder|F913|2}}
** {{ship|Belgian frigate|Wandelaar|F912|2}}
* [[Canadian Forces Maritime Command]]:
** {{HMCS|Algonquin|DDG 283|6}}<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thewesternstar.com/index.cfm?sid=122137&sc=23 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204082518/http://www.thewesternstar.com/index.cfm?sid=122137&sc=23 |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 4, 2013 |author=Frank Gale |title=Stephenville native appointed commander of HMCS Calgary |publisher=The Western Star |date=January 4, 2008 |access-date=June 9, 2010 }}</ref>
** {{HMCS|Huron|DDG 281|6}}
** {{HMCS|Iroquois|DDH 280|6}}
** {{HMCS|Preserver|AOR 510|6}}
** {{HMCS|Protecteur|AOR 509|6}}
** {{HMCS|Toronto|FFH 333|6}}
** {{HMCS|Ville de Quebec|FFH 332|6}}
** {{HMCS|Fredericton|FFH 337|6}}
* [[Royal Danish Navy]]:
** [[HDMS Niels Juel (F354)|HDMS ''Niels Juel'']]
* [[French Navy]]:<ref name="afhsomil">{{Cite web |url=http://www.afhso.af.mil/topics/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=15871 |title=Factsheets : Operation Sharp Guard |publisher=Air Force Historical Studies Office |access-date=June 8, 2010 |archive-date=July 22, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722062527/http://www.afhso.af.mil/topics/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=15871 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
** [[D'Estienne d'Orves-class aviso|''Commandant Blaison'']]
** {{ship|French frigate|Jean Bart|D615|2}}
** {{ship|French frigate|La Fayette|F710|2}}
** [[D'Estienne d'Orves-class aviso|''Premier Maitre L'HER'']]
** [[D'Estienne d'Orves-class aviso|''CDT de Pimodan'']]
* [[German Navy]]:
** [[German frigate Emden (F210)|''Emden'']]
** [[German frigate Rheinland-Pfalz (F209)|''Rheinland-Pfalz'']]
** [[German destroyer Rommel|''Rommel'']]
** [[German frigate Niedersachsen (F208)|''Niedersachsen'']]
* [[Hellenic Navy]]:
** {{ship|Greek frigate|Elli|F450|2}}
** {{ship|Greek frigate|Hydra|F-452|2}}
** {{ship|Greek destroyer|Themistoklis|D221|2}} 
** {{ship|Greek frigate|Thraki|F457|2}}
* [[Italian Navy]]:
** [[Maestrale-class frigate|''Espero'']]
** [[Maestrale-class frigate|''Euro'']]
** [[Minerva-class corvette|''Fenice'']]
** [[Maestrale-class frigate|''Libeccio'']]
** [[Maestrale-class frigate|''Grecale'']]
** [[Durand de la Penne-class destroyer|''Luigi Durand de la Penne'']]
** [[Lupo-class frigate|''Lupo'']]
** [[Maestrale-class frigate|''Zeffiro'']]
* [[Royal Netherlands Navy]]:<ref name="afhsomil"/>
** [[HNLMS Jacob van Heemskerck (F812)|HNLMS ''Jacob van Heemskerk'']]
** {{HNLMS|Jan van Brakel|F825|6}}
** [[Belgian frigate Leopold I (F930)|HNLMS ''Karel Doorman'']]
** [[HNLMS Abraham van der Hulst (F832)|HNLMS ''Abraham van der Hulst'']]
** {{HNLMS|Philips van Almonde|F823|6}}
** {{HNLMS|Piet Hein|F811|6}}
** [[HNLMS Pieter Florisz (F826)|HNLMS ''Pieter Florisz'']]
** [[HNLMS Bloys van Treslong (F824)]]
** [[HNLMS Van Kinsbergen (F809)|HNLMS ''Van Kinsbergen'']]
** [[HNLMS Witte de With (F813)|HNLMS ''Witte de With'']]
** [[HNLMS Zuiderkruis (A832)]]
** [[HNLMS De Ruyter (F806)]]
* [[Portuguese Navy]]:
** {{ship|NRP|Vasco da Gama|F330|6}}
* [[Spanish Navy]]:
** {{ship|Spanish frigate|Andalucia|F72|2}}
** {{ship|Spanish frigate|Asturias|F74|2}}
** {{ship|Spanish frigate|Extremadura|F75|2}}
** {{ship|Spanish frigate|Numancia|F83|2}}
** {{ship|Spanish frigate|Reina Sofía|F84|2}}<ref name="afhsomil"/>
* [[Royal Norwegian Navy]]:
** {{HNoMS|Trondheim|F302|6}}
** {{HNoMS|Narvik|F304|6}}
* [[Turkish Navy]]:
** {{ship|TCG|Ege|F-256|6}}
** [[USS Reasoner (FF-1063)|TCG ''Kocatepe'']]<ref name="afhsomil"/>
* [[Royal Navy]]:<ref name="independent1"/>
** {{HMS|Battleaxe|F89|6}}
** {{HMS|Brilliant|F90|6}}
** {{HMS|Brazen|F91|6}}
** {{HMS|Campbeltown|F86|6}}
** {{HMS|Chatham|F87|6}}
** {{HMS|Cumberland|F85|6}}
** {{HMS|Edinburgh|D97|6}}
**{{HMS|Glasgow|D88|6}}
** {{HMS|Nottingham|D91|6}}
** {{HMS|Beaver|F93|6}}
** {{ship|RFA|Orangeleaf|A110|6}}
* [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]]:
** {{USS|America|CV-66|6}}
** {{USS|Anzio|CG-68|6}}
** {{USS|Arthur W. Radford|DD-968|6}}<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.science-bbs.com/152-military-moderated/7e5ee2491ee78c9d.htm |title=Destroyer Joins Operation Sharp Guard |publisher=CINCUSNAVEUR - Commander in Chief, US Naval Forces, Europe |date=23 May 1996 |access-date=7 September 2018 |archive-date=4 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140304235259/http://www.science-bbs.com/152-military-moderated/7e5ee2491ee78c9d.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>
** {{USS|Bainbridge|CGN-25|6}}
** {{USS|Boone|FFG-28|6}}
** {{USS|Boston|SSN-703|6}}
** {{USS|Cincinnati|SSN-693|6}}
** {{USS|Cape St. George|CG-71|6}}
** {{USS|Comte de Grasse|DD-974|6}}
** {{USS|Conolly|DD-979|6}}<ref>{{Cite web |author=John Pike |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/dd-979.htm |title=DD 979 Conolly |publisher=Globalsecurity.org |access-date=June 9, 2010 |archive-date=September 12, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090912164011/http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/dd-979.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>
** {{USS|Dale|CG-19|6}}
** {{USS|Deyo|DD-989|6}}
** {{USS|Dwight D. Eisenhower|CVN-69|6}}
** {{USS|Edenton|ATS-1|6}}
** {{USS|Elrod|FFG-55|6}}
** {{USS|Groton|SSN-694|6}}
** {{USS|John Rodgers|DD-983|6}}
** {{USS|Josephus Daniels|CG-27|6}}
** {{USS|Hue City|CG-66|6}}
** {{USS|Kauffman|FFG-59|6}}
** {{USS|Kidd|DDG-993|6}}
** {{USS|Mississippi|CGN-40|6}}
** {{USS|Mitscher|DDG-57|6}}
** {{USS|Monterey|CG-61|6}}
** {{USS|Nassau|LHA-4|6}}
** {{USS|Nicholas|FFG-47|6}}
** {{USS|Normandy|CG-60|6}}<ref name="google3"/>
** {{USS|Pensacola|LSD-38|6}}
** {{USS|Peterson|DD-969|6}}
** {{USS|Ponce|LPD-15|6}}
** {{USS|Saipan|LHA-2|6}}
** {{USS|Samuel B. Roberts|FFG-58|6}}<ref name="afhsomil"/>
** {{USS|Scott|DDG-995|6}}<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=vOcNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Q28DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5516,2434904&dq=operation-sharp-guard&hl=en "Military News"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160730081409/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=vOcNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Q28DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5516,2434904&dq=operation-sharp-guard&hl=en |date=2016-07-30 }}, ''[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]]'', January 6, 1994, retrieved June 8, 2010</ref>
** {{USS|Simpson|FFG-56|6}}
** {{USS|South Carolina|CGN-37|6}}
** {{USS|Thomas S. Gates|CG-51|6}}
** {{USS|Ticonderoga|CG-47|6}}
** {{USS|Trepang|SSN-674}}
** {{USS|Theodore Roosevelt|CVN-71|6}}
** {{USS|Thorn|DD-988|6}}
** {{USS|Vicksburg|CG-69|6}}
**{{USS|Yorktown|CG-48 |6}}
**{{USNS|Kanawha|T-AO-196|6}}
{{div col end}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Politics|Oceans}}
* [[Yugoslav Wars]]
*[[Legal assessments of the Gaza flotilla raid]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Wikisource|United Nations Security Council Resolutions}}
* [https://www.un.org/documents/scres.htm Security Council resolutions]
* [https://www.un.org/Docs/sc/ UN Security Council Official Website, including all resolutions]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090115165515/http://www.afsouth.nato.int/operations/sharpguard/SharpGuardFactSheet.htm NATO Regional HQ Allied Forces Southern Europe Fact Sheet on Operation Sharp Guard]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061008082029/http://www.afsouth.nato.int/archives/gopher/facts-afs-ops-07DECEMBER95.txt Update on Operation Sharp Guard], December 1995
* [http://www.nato.int/ifor/gfa/gfa-home.htm General Framework Agreement]
* [http://www.nato.int/docu/handbook/2001/hb050102.htm "Evolution of the Conflict"], NATO Handbook, December 18, 2002
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120322064226/http://md1.csa.com/partners/viewrecord.php?requester=gs&collection=TRD&recid=A0605051712AH&q=%22operation+sharp+guard%22&uid=789543518&setcookie=yes "Operation Sharp Guard: the sea embargo of Serbia and Montenegro"], Barberan, J. F., ''Revista de Aeronáutica y Astronáutica'', no. 727, pp.&nbsp;750–57. October 2003

{{Common Security and Defence Policy/missions}}

{{coord missing|Mediterranean}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sharp Guard}}
[[Category:Naval operations of the European Union]]
[[Category:NATO intervention in the former Yugoslavia]]
[[Category:United Nations operations in the former Yugoslavia]]
[[Category:Blockades by the United States]]
[[Category:Blockades]]
[[Category:Battles and conflicts without fatalities]]
[[Category:1993 in Europe]]
[[Category:1994 in Europe]]
[[Category:1995 in Europe]]
[[Category:1996 in Europe]]
[[Category:Military operations of the Yugoslav Wars involving Germany]]
[[Category:Blockades by the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Military operations involving the United States]]
[[Category:Battles of the Yugoslav Wars]]
[[Category:Military history of the Mediterranean]]