Coast Guard, Navy conduct joint Oceania Maritime Security Initiative Patrol Conduct Enforcement Boarding

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HONOLULU — A Coast Guard law enforcement detachment, embarked aboard the Navy littoral combat ship USS Tulsa (LCS 16), conducted a maritime law enforcement boarding in the Western Pacific,Thursday.

The joint mission was in support of the Secretary of Defense’s Oceania Maritime Security Initiative (OMSI) to enforce international law in order to protect the United States and Pacific Island Nations’ resource security and sovereignty.

“One of the greatest challenges when operating in the Pacific is the vast distances involved,” said Lt. Cmdr. Jessica Conway, a current operations officer with the Coast Guard 14th District. “The ability to integrate with the Navy allows us to cover a much larger area with our enforcement operations combating illegal fishing and transnational crime while also promoting interoperability between the services.”

During the operation Law Enforcement Detachment 105 from the Coast Guard Pacific Tactical Law Enforcement Team conducted a high seas boarding and inspection in accordance with the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention’s standard operating procedures.

No suspected violations of WCPFC Conservation and Management Measures were found by the boarding team.

The OMSI program is a Secretary of Defense program that leverages Department of Defense assets transiting the region to improve maritime security and maritime domain awareness, ultimately supporting regional stability and partnerships in Oceania.

The joint OMSI mission improves maritime security and maritime domain awareness by enabling Coast Guard law enforcement personnel to conduct maritime law enforcement operations from Navy assets.

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-USCG-