International Maritime Exercise 2019, involving 50 nations and seven international organizations, began on Monday in the Middle East, hosted by the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and the Navy's Fifth Fleet.

The exercise is the sixth of its kind, having last conducted in 2017. It will be held in four phases, including staff build-up and training, seminars and table-top discussions, the at-sea Fleet Training Exercise and redeployment of forces.

Events will be conducted in the Persian Gulf, Sea of Oman, Gulf of Aden and Red Sea, and will involve air, surface and underwater mine countermeasure operations and harbor force protection scenarios with unmanned underwater vehicles, the Command said.

An infrastructure protection symposium and a search-and-seizure seminar are also planned in Manama, Bahrain. The list of participants also includes civilian and maritime industry organizations.

"This year's iteration is the largest yet, expanding in size and geography; including all essential elements of maritime security operations," Vice Adm. Jim Malloy, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, said in a press release. "We've grown participation by about twenty nations, are covering an unprecedented amount of ground in the region, and our multinational team is taking part in more training scenarios than ever before."

The exercise will conclude on November 12.

Related Links
Naval Warfare in the 21st Century

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The Space Media Network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceMediaNetwork Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceMediaNetwork Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Expeditionary sea base USNS Miguel Keith completes acceptance trials
Washington (UPI) Oct 16, 2019
The Expeditionary Sea Base ship, USNS Miguel Keith, successfully completed its acceptance trials off the California coast, the U.S. Navy announced. The vessel left the General Dynamics shipyard in San Diego last week, completing its week-long trials on Oct. 11, the Navy said on Tuesday. While not officially named yet, ESB 5 will be named for U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Miguel Keith, who was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for heroism in Vietnam. The USNS Miguel Ke ... read more