In Pakistan, 46 Navies conduct counter-piracy exercise. The Italian Navy participates with ITS Margottini

15 February 2019 08.42

Counter-piracy, cooperation in crisis areas and interoperability between naval fleets. These were the key purposes of the international AMAN 2019 Exercise, organised by the Pakistan Navy, in which the Italian Navy has been represented by the European Multi-Mission (FREMM) Frigate ITS Carlo Margottini, already deployed for her campaign in Middle East and Arabian Sea.

The Exercise Aman (an Urdu word meaning "peace") kicked off on Friday 8 February. The opening ceremony was attended by the Pakistan Fleet Commander and by representatives of the 46 Navies of the countries - including United States, United Kingdom and Japan – which have participated in the 2019 edition with maritime and air assets. The exercise has been conducted in a port (tactical planning) and at-sea (operational) phase, off the port of Karachi, where ITS Margottini carried out drills on subjects including counter-piracy, firing and rescue of ships and personnel in distress.

This event has been an opportunity to strengthen international cooperation in a sensitive area where cooperation at sea between navies has resulted in a decrease in maritime piracy.

During the port call at Karachi, ITS Margottini's crew received the visit of the Ambassador of Italy, Stefano Pontecorvo, and of the local Italian community, which could find a part of their country of origin in Pakistan. At the end of the exercise, the Italian frigate headed for Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (next stopover of her campaign), where she arrived on 14 February to participate in IDEX-NAVDEX 2019, leading international defence exhibition displaying the latest technology across land, sea and air sectors of defence.

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