Meeting with RADM Hudson, Commander, European Union Naval Forces and Commander, UK Maritime Force

Meeting with RADM Hudson, Commander, European Union Naval Forces and Commander, UK Maritime Force
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Guardians,

Another busy but fruitful day here in London. Prior to the Council vote this morning (see earlier post). I hosted delegation leaders from Germany, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway at a breakfast meeting and discussed maritime surveillance and management options for vessels falling below the Safety of Life At Sea (SOLAS) Convention threshold of 300 gross tons.

Following the Council Vote, we travelled to the outskirts of London to Northwood, home of the UK Joint Headquarters. Located there are two other entities that have roles in anti-piracy operations in and around the Horn of Africa.

The first entity is the European Union Naval Force For Counter Piracy and Humanitarian Assistance (EU NAVFOR). This force is commanded by RADM Thomas Hudson of the Royal Navy. He is also double hatted as the Commander UK Maritime Force. EU NAVFOR develops and deploys European Union forces for counter piracy operations on behalf of the European Union (Operation Atalanta). EU NAVFOR also coordinates information sharing among merchant vessels, shipping companies, and other stakeholders through the Maritime Security Center - Horn of Africa (MSC-HOA) which located in the Northwood complex as well. MSC-HOA was awarded the Coast Guard Distinguished Public Service Award earlier in the week for their efforts.

The second entity is the Allied Maritime Component Command Headquarters Northwood (CC MAR HQ Northwood). CC MAR HQ is a NATO command responsible for the strategic picture of the position of all naval ships and Task Forces in the Atlantic. In addition, it is responsible for the administration and programming of two of NATO's four standing naval forces. One of those forces supports Operation Ocean Shield in the Somali Basin. This team is one of many critical partners that is making a difference in combatting piracy

This week has allowed us to better understand the significant effort being expended to combat piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the Somali Basin and identified potential ways in which the Coast Guard can assist in our many roles as force provider, regulator, and delegation member at IMO.

ADM A