Republic of Korea (ROK) minister of national defense visited the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) March 31. Kwan-jin Kim’s visit took place during exercise Ssang Yong 2014, an annual combined exercise conducted by Navy and Marine forces with the Republic of Kor
On 16th March the Force Commander of EU Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia Operation Atalanta, Rear Admiral Hervé Bléjean visited the Spanish Offshore Patrol Vessel, ESPS Relampago for the first time since the ship arrived in the piracy high risk area. ESPS Relampago joined Operation Atalanta, the EU
After two and a half years protecting the World Food Programme (WFP) ship, MV Caroline Scan, from pirate attack off the coast of Somalia, the EU Naval Force has bid the vessel and her hard-working crew a fond farewell. In April 2014, MV Caroline Scan will be entering a period of maintenance, so th
It’s not every day that passengers on board a civilian cruise liner would get so close to a warship on operations that they could wave to each other, but this is just what happened last week when the German cruise liner, AIDAdiva, with over 2,000 passengers on board, met German frigate FGS Hessen at
Ahead of Chinese President Xi’s visit to the European Union in Brussels, a significant naval exercise has taken place in the Gulf of Aden to demonstrate the growing cooperation between the EU and China on issues of international security and defence. EU Naval Force warships, FS Siroco and FGS Hess
Chief of U.S. Naval Research Rear Adm. Matthew Klunder joined family members of the late Neil Armstrong March 29 to christen the Navy’s newest research ship, named for the legendary astronaut and first man to walk on the moon. The lead Auxiliary General Oceanographic Research (AGOR) ship in its cl
Korea Opts for Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Aircraft The Republic of Korea has formally selected the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II aircraft for its F-X fighter acquisition program. USS Elrod Takes Over Escort Duties of Libyan Seized Tanker The U.S. Navy’s USS Elrod relieved the USS Stout of
Russia could provide China with its latest Kalina-class submarine, the Voice of Russia writes. Official Beijing had initially requested from the Russian Government to provide its Navy with four Lada-class submarines. The plan was to revamp these subs with Chinese engines and an electronic fire-con
The U.S. Navy’s top admiral, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert, spent time last weekend at the Navy’s Arctic Ice Camp and embarked aboard the USS New Mexico (SSN 779) as it participated in Ice Exercise 2014 (ICEX) with USS Hampton (SSN 767) beneath the Arctic Ocean. “It’s necessa
The ever-changing global security environment makes the worldwide presence of naval assets more important than ever, U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus told the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday. Mabus testified alongside Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert and Marine Corps Comm
Exercise DYNAMIC MOVE (DME14), a week-long naval mine counter-measures exercise hosted by the Belgium-Netherlands (BE-NL) Naval Mine Warfare School EGUERMIN (NATO Naval Mine Warfare Centre Of Excellence / NMW COE), wrapped up last week. The annual NATO exercise, designed to test naval mine counter
On Wednesday 26 March 2014, European Union Ambassadors met with the President of Puntland, Dr. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, and his Cabinet on board the French EU Naval Force flagship, FS Siroco, to discuss key issues related to political, security and development cooperation, and to participate in a speci
Russia continues to reinforce units along the eastern and southern Ukraine border, Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said during a news conference today. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel last week that the Russian troops were massing f
Standing NATO Mine Counter-Measures Group TWO (SNMCMG2) participated in Exercise NIRIIS 2014 earlier this month near Crete. The exercise focused on training participants in Maritime Interdiction Operations, including asymmetric threat scenarios, helicopter and flight-deck training, mine countermea
