The first edition of the "Counter Piracy Activity" (CPA) has just ended in the waters of the Gulf of Aden, an exercise activity born from the need for coordination of the different coalition units, such as the European Task Force involved in anti-piracy operation Atalanta (EUNAVFOR - TF 465), now under Italian leadership, the assets of Combined Maritime Force (CMF – TF 151) and naval units (Independent Deployers - IDs) operating under the national flag to combat piracy in the Horn of Africa.
The participation of different structures, many of which non-NATO / EU, suggested the adoption of a coordination plan to combat piracy (Counter Piracy Combined Tactical Coordination Plan - CPTCP), aimed at making any joint action more effective. The responsibility for coordinating and implementing the CPTCP falls in turn to the commands of the two main TFs in the area (TF465 and TF151), promoters of the initiative. The standard tactical instructions (STI), part of the plan, are shared with all air and naval units, as a common basis for anti-piracy operations or for the management of joint search and rescue operations at sea (SOLAS).
In the specific edition of this year, in the three days of activity at sea, the TF 465 participated with:
- the Flagship or Unity of flag, the Italian frigate Carlo Margottini;
- the Spanish offshore patrol boat Meteor;
- the German Orion P3 aircraft.
The TF 151 has instead taken part in the activity with:
- the Japanese destroyer Akebono;
- the Japanese P3 aircraft.
The Korean destroyer Munmu The Great he represented the IDs.
The activity program aimed to increase interoperability between participants by sharing operational procedures related to:
- the control of merchant traffic;
- search and rescue operations at sea;
- the fight against piracy, including the boarding;
- medical evacuations;
- kinematic, tactical and training maneuvers.
The activities at sea have been accompanied by numerous other simulated ones, based on the exchange of messages, using the common networks dedicated to anti-piracy in the Indian Ocean. These exercises were mainly aimed at managing roles and responsibilities, emphasizing certain delicate legal aspects relating to the scenarios hypothesized with the consequent application of the appropriate rules of engagement.
Even the meetings, both the preliminary coordination and the final review, were held on board the ship Margottini, used in the operation Atalanta, and of Nave Munmu The Great in an environment of sincere cooperation, they made it possible to reach a mutual and fruitful exchange of opinions and knowledge.
Only the real and sincere sharing by everyone of what has been experimented, combined with an effective exploitation of the lessons learned, can in fact constitute a solid base on which to build, in the future, an increasingly compact integration between the different naval forces operating in the difficult theater made up of this part of the restless Indian Ocean.
