In an historic first for the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the United States Coast Guard supported RMI law enforcement personnel in conducting a ship boarding and vessel inspection operation within RMI’s territorial sea.
The Guam-based USCG Cutter SEQUOIA visited Majuro, Marshall Islands, December 2-4 to conduct a law enforcement professional exchange with RMI Sea Patrol personnel.
The exchange concluded with armed boarding teams, carried by SEQUOIA’s high speed inflatable, intercepting and boarding three foreign fishing vessels in the vicinity of Majuro, the nation’s capitol.
The joint operation was authorized by both governments via a Shiprider Agreement that was recently concluded through an exchange of diplomatic notes. Clyde Bishop, the United States Ambassador to the RMI, expressed his appreciation to both the RMI and the Coast Guard for successfully implementing the agreement. He expressed his hope that more such operations will be conducted in the near future with the goal of deterring various forms of transnational crime within the territorial waters of the RMI and helping to ensure the viability of the multi-billion dollar fishing industry in the Pacific Islands.
Source: U.S. Embassy Majuro, Marshall Islands, to Yokwe Online, December 14, 2007
