The US Navy’s forward-deployed Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Ross (DDG 71) joined Royal Moroccan Navy SIGMA frigate Tarek Ben Ziyad for a series of live fire exercises off the Moroccan coast.
The drill took place after USS Ross departed Agadir, Morocco, January 13, after a scheduled port visit to participate in exercise African Sea Lion.
One of African Sea Lion’s objectives is to test and evaluate US and Moroccan ability to conduct coordinated, combined naval surface fire support exercises on the Tan Tan firing range.
“Engagements such as these strengthen the bonds between the U.S. and our partners as we work peace and prosperity in the region,” said Cmdr. Bryan S. Gallo commanding officer of Ross. “It was a pleasure working with the Royal Moroccan Navy, and we look forward to holding additional exercises in the future to maintain the warfighting readiness of both our respective naval forces.”
Ross, forward-deployed to Rota, Spain, is on its sixth patrol in the US 6th Fleet area of operations in support of regional allies and partners and U.S. national security interests in Europe and Africa.