THE French Navy has once again dedicated resources to help Fijian naval personnel monitor and police the high seas.
The La Glorieuse, the fifth unit out of 10 P400 French Navy ships, berthed at the Lautoka Port on Friday after carrying out a series of patrols within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
The vessel and her crew were also in Fiji last December to help the Fiji Navy monitor and curb serious crimes including human and drug trafficking and illegal fishing.
Commanding officer Lieutenant Julien Feurtey is in charge of 30 people on board the vessel.
“We left Noumea two weeks ago and our main mission here is to patrol inside the EEZ and report all the activity we see at sea,” he said.
This includes local and international fishermen operating within the EEZ.
Similar to operations carried out by other international naval personnel, Lt Feurtey and his team work in collaboration with the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre of Fiji to record all activity encountered during the patrols.
During the crew’s previous patrol, Lt Feurtey said, they encountered about 10 to 15 vessels, all of whom had valid licences.
The vessel is expected to return to Noumea after completing its patrol in Fiji.
