On Thursday morning, 29 August 2013, three NATO ships assigned to Standing NATO Mine Counter-Measures Group TWO (SNMCMG2) arrived in Sevastopol for a scheduled visit to the Black Sea port.
Under the command of Commander Matthias Seipel, German Navy, the Group includes the flagship FGS MOSEL and FGS ROTTWEIL of the German Navy and TCG ERDEMLI of the Turkish Navy.
“We are very happy to be visiting this historic port,” said Seipel. “The Ukraine is one of NATO’s most valued partners, and we appreciate every opportunity we have to engage with our Ukrainian Navy counterparts.”
During the visit, the NATO forces will exercise together with their Ukrainian counterparts, conducting personnel exchange visits in port.
In conjunction with the port visit by SNMCMG2, NATO Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM) Deputy Commander, Vice Admiral Christian Canova, will conduct a courtesy visit to the port, home to the Ukrainian Navy.
“These opportunities to work together in close fashion not only strengthen NATO ties to our Ukrainian partners, but they also provide invaluable chances to improve interoperability and cooperation in areas of shared interest,” said Canova. “These types of interaction pay real dividends when our forces continue to work together far from our homes in support of NATO’s counter-terrorism Operation ACTIVE ENDEAVOUR and counter-piracy Operation OCEAN SHIELD.”
[mappress] Press Release, August 29, 2013; Image: NATO ACO