A major naval exercise started in the Gulf yesterday (October 29), aimed at strengthening civil and military response to a global shipping threat.

The exercise, dubbed Lucky Mariner 14-1, lasts until Saturday, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

Members from Naval Co-operation and Guidance for Shipping and US Naval Forces Central Command (Navcent) as well as commercial shipping industry representatives are taking part.

“The Fifth Fleet, Naval Forces Central Command operates in the most strategically significant part of our planet,” said Vice Admiral John Miller, commander of Navcent, US Fifth Fleet, Combined Maritime Forces.

“The global economy rests on the free movement of maritime traffic through three critical chokepoints that reside in this theatre - the Suez Canal, the Strait of Bab Al Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz.

“Security of the maritime means security for the entire region – that starts here, with us,” he said.

The exercise will focus on the threat of waterborne attack to shipping. – TradeArabia News Service