Spain is sending its most advanced frigate to help provide air defense for Cyprus, an EU member state that has come under drone attack as tensions rise across the Middle East, the Spanish Defence Ministry said Thursday.

The Cristóbal Colón (F105 frigate) will deploy to the eastern Mediterranean to help shield the island from aerial threats and assist with potential evacuations of civilians from the region.

The Spanish warship will join a multinational European naval force led by the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (R91), alongside vessels from the Netherlands, Greece and Italy, tasked with strengthening air defense around Cyprus, located roughly 150 miles (240 km) from Israel’s coast.

The deployment follows a drone strike early Monday on the British RAF Akrotiri base on the island. British officials said the attack caused minimal damage and no casualties, adding on Thursday that the drone was not launched from Iran.

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