Ghana-US Maritime Forces Complete Combined Maritime Law Enforcement Operation

SEKONDI, Ghana – Today, Ghanaian and U.S. maritime forces completed a three-week combined maritime law enforcement operation as part of African Maritime Law Enforcement Partnership (AMLEP), the operational phase of the Africa Partnership Station (APS) program.

During the operation, a combined U.S.-Ghanaian boarding team detected three fishing vessels that were fishing illegally in Ghanaian waters. A fisheries agent from the Fisheries Commission of Ghana, embedded with the combined boarding team, recorded specific infractions for these vessels based on Ghanaian fishery regulations.

The combined boarding team consisted of Ghanaian Navy and Marine Police personnel alongside a U.S. Coast Guard law enforcement detachment. Operations were conducted from the U.S. Navy's joint high-speed vessel USNS Spearhead (JHSV 1) and in close coordination with the Maritime Operations Center at the Western Command Naval Base in Sekondi, Ghana. Spearhead, the U.S. Navy's first JHSV, which departed Norfolk, Va., in mid-January, is on its maiden deployment and serving to enhance the Africa Partnership Station program through exercises and bi-lateral engagements.

APS is an international collaborative maritime security capacity-building program that seeks to improve maritime security by increasing tactical expertise, information sharing and regional cooperation.