U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet (USNAVSO/FOURTHFLT) is hosting the annual Maritime Synchronization Conference (MSC) onboard Naval Station Mayport, Dec. 10-14.

The conference joins U.S. Navy attaches, section chiefs and other theater stakeholders from the U.S. Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM) area of responsibility (AOR), which encompasses the Caribbean, Central and South America to discuss common naval issues and concerns to develop innovative solutions for current and future operations.

"The environment changes, priorities change," said Lowell McClintock, MSC lead planner, during opening remarks. "These conferences allow all maritime services to collaborate with each other to meet the objectives set by our commander in chief.”

The attendees include approximately 150 U.S. military and civilian personnel from 22 countries, including Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Uruguay.

The annual conference is based on the foundations of the Maritime Security Cooperation policy signed by the chief of naval operations, commandant of the Marine Corps and the commandant of the Coast Guard in 2013. The primary objective of the conference is to coordinate and synchronize fiscal year 2019-2022 maritime component security cooperation activities in support of the SOUTHCOM Theater Campaign Plan and the Tri-Service (USN-USMC-USCG) Maritime Security Cooperation guidance.

Other commands and agencies attending the conference were the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Defense Intelligence Agency, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Southern Command, U.S. Coast Guard International Affairs, Special Operations Command South, Navy International Programs Office, Naval Education and Training Security Assistance Field Activity, Naval Small Craft Instruction and Technical Training School, U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Naval War College, Naval Criminal Investigative Service Southeast Field Office, Office of Naval Intelligence, and Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command.

The conference, previously known as the Navy Section Chief Synchronization conference, began in 2003. It was designed to inform Navy section chiefs about theater security cooperation activities that support USSOUTHCOM objectives for current and upcoming years.

USNAVSO/FOURTHFLT supports USSOUTHCOM's joint and combined military operations by employing maritime forces in cooperative maritime security operations in order to maintain access, enhance interoperability, and build enduring partnerships that foster regional security and promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the Caribbean, Central and South American regions.

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