U.S.Coast Guard: Training the world in Port Security

Part of the Global War on Terror that tends to go underreported - the training of allies, as set out here in a piece on the graduates of the U.S. Coast Guard's International Maritime Officers Course:

For 10 weeks, each student shares experiences of maritime operations from their region of the world and learns the basics of the U.S. Coast Guard.

The class that graduated Friday included 21 students from 20 countries: Albania, Bangladesh, Chile, Colombia, Republic of the Congo, Fiji, Gabon, Georgia, Ghana, Haiti, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Lithuania, Maldives, Mozambique, Romania, Sri Lanka, Tonga and Uruguay.

They trained in maritime law enforcement, a mission of greater importance today with the threat of terrorism and piracy.

They learn to become better leaders, better planners.

"In our country, we plan after the action happens," said Capt. Cassiano Horacio Rihiva of Mozambique. "We respond after the action happens. We should now plan before the action happens."
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One nation's choices, Ewalt said during her address to the graduates, can have regional and global effects.

Mboussi, the student from the Republic of the Congo, pointed to the requirements that ships must meet to enter U.S. ports as one example. Countries worldwide would benefit from enacting those standards, Mboussi said.

He said, "Port security doesn't start or end with one country."

Exactly right - a lesson well learned.