The European Union and the US conducted a first ever joint naval exercise in Indo-Pacific on Thursday and Friday, the EU External Action Service (EEAS) announced today.

The joint naval exercise took place in the framework of the EU and US patrolling and exercising high seas freedom of navigation.

The exercise involved USS PAUL HAMILTON, as well as EU Naval Force Operation Atalanta’s Spanish Ship REINA SOFIA and Italian Ship CARLO BERGAMINI.

It included professional exchanges on boarding procedures, ship navigation, and training designed to improve interoperability and integration, it noted in a press release.

The exercise forms part of the shared commitment of the EU and the US to work towards practical maritime cooperation and support a free and open Indo-Pacific.

The EU and the United States reaffirm their commitment to further pursue coordination and complementary work for regional maritime security to support freedom of navigation and other internationally lawful uses of the sea in the Indo-Pacific, it added.

Source: Kuwait News Agency