Naval representatives from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and the Dominican Republic participated in the first international symposium on Defiant Class Near Coastal Patrol Vessels (NCPV), carried out February 26-March 1 in Panama City.
The event, organized by the Panamanian National Air and Naval Service (SENAN) and sponsored by the U.S. Embassy, was aimed at promoting the exchange of experiences in crucial areas such as logistics and financial factors, and training related to the Defiant Class NCPV vessels.
The importance of this meeting lay in the consolidation of cooperation between participating naval forces, thus strengthening security and efficiency in the management of these modern vessels in the region.
“This symposium represented a unique opportunity to address the common challenges faced by the navies in the operation and maintenance of the Defiant Class NCPV vessels, fostering collaboration and mutual learning,” SENAN said.
Captain Christian Ceballos, head of SENAN Naval Command’s Naval Training School, told Diálogo that “the symposium helped strengthen ties between colleagues, strengthen operations doctrine, and will also allow us to remain connected in multiple current operational or maintenance situations, or those that may arise in the future.”
Participants’ recommendations were recorded in the final minutes of the event. Among others, they proposed the creation of a common database, so that the patrol boats’ navigators could exchange information from their countries during any situation or complication, Capt. Ceballos said.
He added that since this vessel was designed for this region, the exchange of this information will help guide future vessel improvements and standardize their capabilities.
On the other hand, Capt. Ceballos stressed the importance of holding periodic annual or biannual meetings, in which all the countries with this type of vessels can participate. “We are still awaiting confirmation, which will come in the coming months, as to whether the initiative will take place in other latitudes or if it will be held again in Panama.”
“What is certain is that these experiences help us to promote training at the regional level, which allow us to learn and share these experiences and take it to a formal training level, to replicate it in the most efficient way within our respective forces,” he said.
Operation Mercury VI
During the same time frame, Panama conducted Operation Mercury VI, an exercise where more than 60 communities and approximately 11,000 people of the Ngäbe Buglé indigenous region received humanitarian assistance, and saw local classrooms and infrastructure upgraded. The operation deployed February 26 to March 8.
In this 2024 edition, one of the missions of the exercise was to airlift 27 modular structures from the Ministry of Education (Meduca) to replace old classrooms in schools/ranches in communities of the Ngäbe Buglé region, benefiting more than 3,000 students.
Panama’s Minister of Government Roger Tejada said that “through the integration of the Public Force and the international cooperation of Joint Task Force Bravo [JTF-Bravo] of U.S. Southern Command [SOUTHCOM], humanitarian assistance was also provided to 23 indigenous communities of difficult access in the Ngäbe Buglé region, with the transfer of 23.5 tons of materials for the construction of modular classrooms and other equipment, as part of the development of the humanitarian exercise.”
The exercise was supported by 84 JTF-Bravo units with six heavy lift helicopters, two CH-47 Chinook, and four UH-60 Blackhawk. The operation included air, naval, and land resources of the Public Force and the participation of more than 132 units that coordinated logistics, the Ministry of Government said.
The Ministry of Health added that these communities also benefited from medical services provided in coordination with 14 medical professionals from JTF-Bravo, who carried out eight medical field trips to offer primary care, vaccinations, nutrition, family planning, and optometry programs, in addition to installing a water and sewage system, which will provide the community with drinking water and improved sanitation.
For this humanitarian mission, SENAN, the National Police, the National Border Service, the National Civil Protection System, and the Agricultural Marketing Institute coordinated their operations with JTF-Bravo.