Group
The delegation from JS Harusame was warmly welcomed by the crew of INS Teg

Officers from the Japanese Ship (JS) Harusame, currently assigned to the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) counter-piracy task force CTF-151, took the opportunity to meet their counterparts on Indian Naval Ship (INS) Teg when both ships were alongside in Salalah, Oman, recently.

Following a high level of piracy attacks off the coast of Somalia, CMF established CTF-151 in 2009 to work with other international coalitions such as NATO and the EU Naval Force to deter, disrupt and thwart piracy operations. Later, other nations began to deploy ships independent of these umbrella organisations, including India. Opportunities such as this meeting offer a chance to share best practice and ensure that the international community can work together as effectively as possible to defeat piracy.

Captain Masatoshi Kashihara, commander of the 20th Deployment of the Surface Force for Piracy Enforcement, and Commander Kunio Aoki, JS Harusame’s Commanding Officer, led the delegation from the Japanese ship and were warmly welcomed onboard. The officers from JS Harusame made the most of this opportunity, exchanging information about maritime security issues in the Gulf of Aden and enhancing the close relationship that already exists between naval personnel contributing to the international counter-piracy mission.

The officers were delighted to be given a tour of the ship by Captain A Y Tardesai, Commanding Officer of INS Teg, before having a series of informal discussions.

Tour
The officers from JS Harusame were given a tour of the INS Teg

Captian Kashihara said:

“It was a great opportunity to deepen our mutual understanding and close cooperation with the crew of INS Teg, which makes eminent sense considering that we are engaged on very similar missions with the shared aim of defeating piracy in the region.”

Discussion
The officers held discussions about the counter-piracy mission

Rear Admiral Pakorn Wanich from the Royal Thai Navy and Commander of CTF-151 said:

“It was very fortunate that the crew of a CTF-151 warship were able to meet with their Indian counterparts. As we are already aware, cooperation among counter piracy units at all level of command is always needed so we can achieve our counter piracy objective. The meeting between the two warships was very beneficial and we will undoubtedly see ever-closer cooperation, ultimately resulting in the success of our counter piracy efforts going forward.”