In recent weeks, the deployment of Nave Rizzo - engaged in the area in activities of presence and surveillance to safeguard the freedom of navigation and protection of national interests - it was also capitalized for the purposes of the action of the European Union in support of maritime safety.
As part of the European initiative Coordinated Maritime Presence - aimed at supporting the so-called "Integrated Approach" of the Union to the stability and development of the Gulf of Guinea area - the Navy has in fact shared with the European Service for External Action (EEAS) the Maritime Situational Awareness (MSA) that the Command in Chief of the Naval Team (CINCNAV), as the national hub of reference, guarantees in relation to the region, thanks to the intrinsic capabilities of the Information Fusion Center and the potential of the SMART (Service oriented infrastructure for MAritime tRaffic Tracking) technological platform fenix.
Given the possible developments in terms of maritime safety and the potential direct and indirect consequences on national interests, the Navy has over the years developed a significant awareness of the dynamics present in the Gulf of Guinea, as well as attention to the criticalities and opportunities of the region, through a constant commitment both in the field of international cooperation and in the enabling sector of capacity building.
In this regard, since 2008 the area has benefited from the integration into the community of the Trans Regional Maritime Network (T-RMN) with access from Senegal, followed by that of Nigeria and more recently of Cameroon.
In the summer of 2018, as part of the Education Campaigns, Nave Louis Durand de La Penne it stopped in the ports of Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria. In 2019 a Mobile Training Team of the San Marco Marine Brigade took part in the US-led exercise OBANGAME 18 and at the same time a Navy Officer was embarked on the US Navy Unit Carson City, as responsible for training the VBSS (Vessel Board Search and Secure) teams, in the more general effort of capacity building in favor of the coastal marine.
In this context, the displacement of the Rizzo ship in the area was planned, as part of which a training program was initiated with French and Spanish naval assets already present in the area, also developing initiatives to directly support national merchant traffic. in the area, in order to provide tangible feedback to the repeated requests of the Italian shipyard (CONFITARMA and ASSOARMATORI) and collaboration activities with Offshore platforms (ENI).
International cooperation, mutual trust and joint growth are the watchwords of the Navy's commitment in a strategic area for interconnection with the complex phenomena affecting the domestic waters of the Mediterranean.
