US Navy,
MAYPORT, Fla: Delegates from the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard met with members of the Brazilian Navy Nov. 5-6 to discuss interactions and cooperation between their navies for 2008 during the U.S. Navy and Brazilian Navy Operational Naval Committee (ONC Brazil) conference.
Hosted by U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (NAVSO) in Mayport, ONC Brazil is an annual conference to plan and agree to the various exercises and theater security cooperation events the U.S. and Brazil intend to conduct for the upcoming year. The ONC brings together representatives from the U.S. and Brazilian Navy so they may meet in person to discuss their countries mutual goals of maritime security in Latin America.
“ONCs are a key part of our ongoing engagement strategy with partner nations,” said NAVSO Director of Exercises and Theater Security Cooperation (TSC) Capt. Steven Blaisdell. “These face-to-face meetings help us understand each other's priorities and needs so we can work together toward mutual interests, which include improving regional maritime security.”
Brazil and the U.S. have a strong partnership in maritime security through many exercises and events. Cooperation and training events in the past have included Panamax and Unitas Atlantic exercises, and recent anti-submarine warfare training with the Brazilian submarine Tikuna (S 34). All of these interactions resulted from work done at previous ONC meetings.
“Our Navy has the same benefit as the U.S. Navy; we achieve much cooperation and that is a win-win for both our countries in this conference,” said Rear Adm. Edlander Santos, Brazilian Navy, Operations Deputy, Naval Operations Command. “When we deepen our relationship, it benefits both our countries.”
ONC Brazil resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding, signed this year by Blaisdell and Santos, which outlined the discussed plans for U.S. and Brazilian interactions for the coming year. Though ONCs have been held for years, the agreements they produce and engagements they lead to directly support the U.S. Navy's new Maritime Strategy, which emphasizes cooperative relationships with international partners.
