The guided missile destroyer USS "Forest Sherman", which is part of the US navy's newly established Southeast Africa Task Group, docked in Maputo on Monday for the start of a five day visit.
According to a navy release "the goal of this task group is to build strong partnerships with southeast African nations to promote maritime safety and security initiatives".
The ship's captain, Commander Dean Vasely, on Wednesday gave Mozambican journalists a tour of the vessel. He said that the US naval officers will be in Maputo for five days exchanging impressions with the Mozambican authorities on matters concerning shipping and maritime security.
American personnel are also training some 50 members of the Mozambican navy in how to handle small boats, how to deal with fires and other emergencies at sea, and how to approach or board suspicious vessels, among other matters.
The "Forrest Sherman", which was commissioned in January 2006, and cost about 900 million dollars, boasts that its combat system "is the most technologically advanced in the world, capable of projecting power both at sea and ashore with precise and lethal accuracy".
The ship carries 96 missiles, and is also armed with a 107 milimetre cannon capable of firing 16 to 20 rounds a minute at targets over 13 kilometres distant. Its radar systems give it the capacity to track "hundreds of contacts simultaneously". It also has a sonar system which can detect "multiple submerged threats independent from other non-related engagements being conducted by the rest of the Combat System".
It has two helicopters on board that can fly rescue or reconnaissance missions. But to date, according to Vesely, the ship has not used any of this military equipment against an enemy.
Vesely said that the ship has the capacity to detect pirate craft or vessels fishing illegally on the high seas. If it meets up with pirate ships in international waters, it is authorised to board them.
But if they are in territorial waters, it merely alerts the authorities of the country in question, and then only if that country has an agreement with the US navy.
The ship has a 315 member crew (38 officers and 277 enlisted crew), including 50 women. While they are in Maputo, the American sailors plan to donate blood to health units in the Mozambican capital.
The navy statement on the "Forrest Sherman"'s African visits declared that "Regional improvements in maritime safety and security will contribute to long term stability and economic development. A prosperous and secure maritime environment free from the theeat of piracy, unlawful fishing, smuggling and other criminal activity benefits Africa, the United States and the rest of the world".
The ship's next port of call is South Africa. It is on a six month tour that has already taken it to Greece, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Romania, Turkey, Djibouti, Tanzania and Comoros.
SOURCE: AIM
