Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command and U.S. 4th Fleet welcomed Navy section chiefs from the Caribbean, Central and South America to Mayport, Jan. 25, to begin the annual Navy Section Chief Conference.

Navy section chiefs are the U.S. Navy representatives within their respective Military Group (MILGP) at U.S. embassies around the world. The section chiefs who attended this year's conference in Mayport work to advance and promote maritime Theater Security Cooperation (TSC) activities and initiatives within the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) area of operations.

TSC activities include efforts such as military-to-military cooperation, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, combined training, exercises and operations, intelligence sharing, and maritime security assistance in Central and South America and the Caribbean.

MILGP representatives from Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Suriname and Uruguay gathered this year to share knowledge and discuss the priorities of the region.

Lowell McClintock, director of Theater Security Cooperation at U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet, noted the conference works to implement the strategies of SOUTHCOM and the maritime services: Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard for executing the mission priorities in the SOUTHCOM theater.

"The two-way flow of communication and education is critical for the success of our missions in Latin America," said McClintock. "Our relationships, both with our partner nations and amongst our maritime services, depend on the collaboration of all involved and the sharing of best practices and lessons learned so that we can target our future engagements to achieve the effects identified in our strategies. This conference has been a great platform to continue that dialogue, develop innovative ideas and maintain our elite "Welterweight" Title."

This year's Navy Section Chief Conference focused on operations and engagements for the coming year, including the Afloat Staging Base program and capabilities, maritime alignment, medical engagements, in port security and ships movements.

Participants also discussed the goals and challenges expected for upcoming Expeditionary Fast Patrol operations, PANAMAX 2016, the multinational exercise of UNITAS, SIFOREX, Continuing Promise and disaster relief efforts and Southern Partnership Station 2016.

Cmdr. Richard Reyes, foreign area officer and Navy section chief to Panama, said, "As a participant in this conference, it was very beneficial to have face-to-face coordination with the other section chiefs in this region, as we are typically geographically separated. Being able to come together to share ideas and lessons from previous missions is critical for developing our plans for execution of future operations."

U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command and U.S. 4th Fleet employ maritime forces in cooperative maritime security operations in order to enhance interoperability, build enduring partnerships that foster regional security, and maintain access in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility.

For more news from U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command & U.S. 4th Fleet, visit www.navy.mil/.