DJIBOUTI – Commander of Combined Task Force 151, Rear Admiral Kaleem Shaukat, Pakistan Navy visited Djibouti, November 18-20 to meet international partners in the fight against armed piracy on the high seas.

Rear Admiral Shaukat met Captain Ichizou Iizuka, Commanding Officer of Japanese Patrol Squadron One, stationed in Djibouti.  Japanese Patrol Squadron One operates maritime reconnaissance aircraft in the area providing an accurate intelligence picture to international forces operating in the area.  Rear Admiral Shaukat was briefed on the Japanese capability and had an opportunity to discuss continued sharing of information between CTF 151 and the Japanese forces deployed independently from the Combined Maritime Forces. He was given a comprehensive tour of the facilities. 

On November 19, Rear Admiral Shaukat met the Chief of the Djibouti Navy, Colonel Abdourahman Aden Cher.  Rear Admiral Shaukat expressed his gratitude for Djibouti’s continued contribution to the counter-piracy mission.  He also offered assistance in further training of Djibouti’s naval forces and encouraged the Djibouti Navy to continue informing local mariners of the international Best Management Practices (BMP) Version 4.  The BMP guidance is an integral part in preventing pirate attacks on merchant vessels.

Under UN mandate, CTF 151’s mission is to disrupt piracy and armed robbery at sea and to engage with regional and other partners to build capacity and improve relevant capabilities, in order to protect global maritime commerce and secure freedom of navigation.  CTF 151 is one of three task forces operating in the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), a 25-nation coalition.  CTF 151’s counter-piracy operations focus on the Gulf of Aden, Southern Red Sea, Arabian Sea and Somali Basin, an area encompassing 2.5 million square miles.