Source: United States Navy
Sentinel Shield, an exercise designed to enhance interoperability, was conducted in the Arabian Gulf and involved personnel and ships from the U.S. Coast Guard and the United Arab Emirates Navy. The USCGC Baranof (WPB 1318) and UAENS Marban (P152) conducted passing exercises and maneuvering drills, as well as small boat training.
“UAE was an excellent partner in conducting the necessary serials to continue to build our relationship in the Arabian Gulf,” said Lt. Vaughn Gehman, Baranof’s commanding officer. “IMSC is essential in maintaining the free flow of commerce in these important waters.”
“I was delighted to see our Emirati partners participating in this month’s exercise,” said Commodore Don Mackinnon, commander of IMSC and CTF Sentinel. “Sentinel Shield exercises better train our task force while strengthening our ability to handle real-world scenarios and better communications with our partner nations.”
IMSC was formed in July 2019 in response to increased threats to freedom of navigation for merchant mariners transiting international waters in the Middle East. CTF Sentinel was established four months later to deter state-sponsored malign activity and reassure the merchant shipping industry in the Bab al-Mandeb and Strait of Hormuz.
The coalition includes nine member nations: the Republic of Albania, the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Lithuania, Romania, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.