In late 2007 the Navy launched a new “soft-power” deployment to West and Central Africa. The so-called African Partnership Station is a rotating force of trainers, humanitarians and engineers operating from U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships and aircraft, with a mission of building up African security forces. APS is part of a wider initiative to set up permanent soft-power stations in key spots around the globe, including Latin America and Asia. And it’s the most important naval news story in years.
Now APS is getting a new emphasis. While the Navy’s Combined Task Force 151 aggressively pursues pirates from its base in Djibouti, APS will deploy the frigate Bradley, pictured, to East Africa — Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya, specifically — to help native militaries train for fighting pirates on their own. Navy spokesman Brian Badura explains:
After seeing success with APS in West and Central Africa, we have responded to interest from other African nations who rely on the maritime environment for a variety of reasons. These nations have recognized the possibilities of partnership as they look for ways to increase the skills, knowledge and professionalism that benefit mariners since many African nations rely heavily on the maritime environment to help facilitate commerce and provide valuable income and foodstuffs for their people.
Piracy has become a high interest topic and many nations are working to tackle the problem. APS is taking a different approach to help secure African waters in that it is not intended to be solely a patrolling mission that only deals with piracy. Our goal is to help African nations develop their own skills and capabilities in subjects ranging from maritime law to small boat maintenance to Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) tactics. Think of it as a floating university program delivering tailored real-world training to each nation with an expressed need.
Kenyan General Jeremiah Kianga identified the need for better cooperation with foreign militaries in combating piracy when he announced Kenya’s “war on piracy” in December. APS will go a long way to bolstering Kenya’s fledgling counter-piracy capabilities.
(Photo: Navy)
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