NAVCENT Commander Visits Forward Deployed U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters in Bahrain

By Patrol Forces Southwest Asia Public Affairs | December 15, 2020

MANAMA, Bahrain – Vice Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT), U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), met with Capt. Willie Carmichael, commander of U.S. Coast Guard Patrol Forces Southwest Asia (PATFORSWA), during a visit to PATFORSWA's headquarters and forward deployed units in Manama, Bahrain, Dec. 14.

This visit marks Paparo's first time touring the Coast Guard’s Bahrain based facilities since taking command of NAVCENT, 5th Fleet and CMF in August.

During the visit, Paparo and Carmichael discussed the Coast Guard's contributions to the fleet, the future deployment of six new 154-foot Sentinel-class Coast Guard patrol cutters to the region and ways to expand Coast Guard participation in regional engagements and exercises.

Paparo visited the command building and the mission support and engineering warehouse, where he addressed the crew and thanked them for their dedication and service.

Carmichael then accompanied Paparo for a tour of USCGC Adak (WPB 1333), a 110-foot Island-class patrol boat, and discussed the ship's operations in the Arabian Gulf.

PATFORSWA is composed of six 110-foot cutters, shoreside mission support personnel, and the Maritime Engagement Team. They play a crucial role in maritime security, maritime infrastructure protection, and theater security cooperation in the region. The unit also supports other U.S. Coast Guard deployable specialized forces operating throughout the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility (AOR).

Since the establishment of PATFORSWA in 2003, the U.S. Coast Guard's unique skillset has been in high demand within the CENTCOM AOR where counter-smuggling operations, through the combined maritime forces and visit board search and seizure operations, have grown increasingly vital to enforce acceptable maritime behavior and the rule of law.