Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of NAVCENT, U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces, hosted Commander of the Royal Navy of Oman Rear Adm. Saif bin Nasser bin Mohsin Al Rahbi and other senior Omani officials for discussions on strengthening regional maritime security cooperation.

The visit to Bahrain fell on the first day of an annual Oman-led naval exercise called Khunjar Hadd, in and off the coast of Oman. This year, mine countermeasures ship USS Dextrous (MCM 13), personnel from a U.S. 5th Fleet expeditionary mine countermeasures unit and a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft are slated to participate.

In addition to the Oman and the United States, the weeklong exercise will include forces from France, Japan and the United Kingdom. Training will focus on mine countermeasures, explosive ordnance disposal, maritime interdiction and other combined naval operations

While at the U.S. Navy base in Bahrain, senior Omani officials met with leaders from U.S. 5th Fleet, Combined Maritimes Forces and the International Maritime Security Construct. They also received briefings and toured facilities showcasing unmanned systems the U.S. Navy has integrated into regional maritime operations.

U.S. 5th Fleet’s area of operations encompasses approximately 2.5 million square miles of water area and includes the Arabian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea, parts of the Indian Ocean and three critical choke points at the Strait of Hormuz, Suez Canal and Strait of Bab al Mandeb.