(B2) The ambassadors of the political and security committee must endorse this Tuesday (April 20) the appointment of Vice Admiral José María Núñez Torrente, head of the EU anti-piracy and anti-trafficking operation deployed off the coast of Somalia. Taking office at Rota HQ, Wednesday 21 April.
This change is mainly due to movements within the Spanish Navy. Currently Commander of the Spanish Maritime Forces, Núñez Torrente replaces his compatriot Vice Admiral Eugenio Díaz del Río, became Admiral of the Fleet (ALFLOT) replacing Antonio Martorell Lacave — himself appointed Chief of the Naval Staff (AJEMA) — and General of the Marine Infantry Corps Antonio Planells Palau who was in charge of interim before his retirement (in March 2021). Both of them having previously been at the head of Operation Atalanta.
A naval pilot with a specialty in communications
Born in Ferrol, the great base of the Spanish Armada in Galicia almost 57 years ago, on November 20, 1964, José M. Núñez Torrente entered the Naval Academy in 1983, from which he graduated with the rank of junior lieutenant in 1988. He was above all a naval pilot. He thus began his career at the controls of a Harrier AV-8S and was later to be the chief of operations of the staff of the aircraft flotilla. But he also trained in a 'Communications' specialty. He is a communications officer aboard the aircraft carrier Prince of Asturias, and will alternately be the commanding officer on the patrol boat Candido Perez' and the minehunter turia.
Staff posts
He will hold several positions in the structures of the Spanish Navy. As Chief of Operations for the Fleet Projection Group, he participates in operations Enduring Freedom and in 2020 Iraqi Freedom in 2003 deployed to the Gulf. He was also head of intelligence of the staff of STRIKFORNATO (one of the components of the NATO rapid reaction force, NRF 12), head of the plans division of the staff of the Force d Maritime Action and Superintendent of the Naval Academy.
Head of the maritime component linked to the fight against Covid
In September 2018, he was promoted to Rear Admiral and appointed Chief of the Fleet Staff. In this position, he was also Chief of Staff of the Maritime Component of Operations Balmis et Mision Baluarte responsible for ensuring the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic in Spain. Promoted to Vice-Admiral on February 23, he was appointed Commander of the Spanish High Readiness Maritime Forces (COMSPMARFOR) and of the Spanish Maritime Headquarters (HQ SPMARFOR). NB: It was Rear Admiral Ignacio Villanueva Serrano who replaced him, in March 2021, as Chief of the Fleet Staff.
graduate U.S. Naval War College and Kings College
Among other additional studies, Vice-Admiral Núñez Torrente completed the Combined Forces Maritime Component Commander Course, U.S. Naval War College, and earned a Masters in Defense Studies at Kings College British. José-Maria is married and has three children.
Chief editor of the B2 site. Graduated in European law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and listener to the 65th session of the IHEDN (Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Défense Nationale. Journalist since 1989, founded B2 - Bruxelles2 in 2008. EU/NATO correspondent in Brussels for Sud-Ouest (previously West-France and France-Soir).
