​​​Frigate Antonio Marceglia, the eighth unit of the Italian-French FREMM (European Multi-Mission Frigates) project, departed on January 20th from the La Spezia naval base for an operational projection campaign in the Indo-Pacific area.

During her voyage, the unit will call at 18 ports in 14 countries, covering a total of approximately twenty thousand nautical miles, before returning to Italy next summer.
Djibouti, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Pakistan, Qatar, Oman and Jordan are the planned stops of the Campaign, which will reach its halfway point in Japan, with participation in Expo 2025 in Osaka.

The crew - composed of 143 men and 36 women of the Navy - was greeted, by Admiral Aurelio De Carolis, Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Fleet, during a technical stop in the port of Augusta.

During her campaign, ITS Marceglia will perform the task of promoting the presence and capabilities of the 'Sistema Italia', consolidating international relations and enhancing national industrial and technological excellence.

Furthermore, the frigate will carry out naval diplomacy tasks, interacting with allied and partner navies during the planned training activities.

After travelling 5,300 nautical miles and 355 engine hours, crossing the Suez Canal and the Bab al-Mandeb strait, the ship - having passed the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the Arabian Sea - arrived in the port of Colombo. There, it received honours from the Sri Lanka Navy band and a visit on board from the Italian ambassador, His Excellency Damiano Francovigh.
Before leaving the country, frigate Marceglia will participate in a "Passex" exercise with a unit of the Sri Lankan Navy for joint training, aimed at testing the readiness of crews and the efficiency of their respective equipment.

After leaving the waters of the Laccadive Islands, ITS Marceglia will head towards Indonesia.​