THE United States Coast Guard Cutter Harriet Lane is expected to patrol Fiji’s waters alongside Fijian law enforcement officers as part of efforts to detect and deter drug trafficking and other illicit maritime activities.
The patrol will be carried out under a maritime law enforcement agreement between Fiji and the United States, with Fijian officers joining the vessel during its operations.
Responding to questions from this newspaper, US Coast Guard Captain Jennifer Conklin said transnational criminal organisations continued to pose a threat to regional stability and were using the Pacific as a route for illicit narcotics.
She said the US Coast Guard was working with partners, including Fiji, through collaborative Operation Blue Pacific patrols and information sharing initiatives to disrupt criminal networks. Captain Conklin said the Coast Guard was also focused on addressing the wider impacts associated with drug trafficking.
“Not just the drugs themselves, but the destabilising effects that continue on through those types of activities,” she said.
She confirmed that the USCGC Harriet Lane was currently transiting to Fiji and that the vessel was expected to conduct operations under the maritime law enforcement agreement. Captain Conklin said several Fijian maritime officers would embark on board the cutter, including personnel from the Republic of Fiji Navy, the Fiji Police Force and fisheries authorities.
“The goal of those operations would be to deter any type of illicit maritime activity, exercising their laws within their country.
“And then so we can focus on fisheries, but we can also focus on counter-narcotics or any other illicit activities and also expand our maritime domain awareness throughout the region.” Captain Conklin explained Operation Blue Pacific is the Coast Guard’s overarching effort in the region to bring their unique capabilities and maritime authorities together to promote safety, security, and resiliency across the Pacific Islands and Oceania.
“Obviously, with our maritime routes and our capabilities and our focus on maritime governance, we work with the Pacific Island partners very well, whether it’s in law enforcement space, if it’s in search and rescue, port security.
“We know all of our ports, almost all of our commodities coming through our seaports. So having safe, secure, dependable seaports is vital.”
The US Embassy is scheduled to host a media tour aboard the USCGC Harriet Lane today.
l Editorial Comment: P8
