Maritime exercices

Organisation of TableTop Command Post regional Maritime Security Exercises (TTX/CPX)

Exercises are perhaps the most powerful training tool available to prepare personnel, administrations and governments to confront the vast spectrum of maritime safety and security challenges, in today’s complex world. 

The engagement of the CRIMARIO II Project in training activities covers the full range of actions. At the most rudimentary level, trainers provide instruction to operators in various centres on the basic skills required to gather, analyse and exchange information effectively. The project also facilitates the conduct of national exercises that bring together personnel from various agencies to collectively face challenges in a benign environment, and learn lessons and techniques that will improve their response to real-world emergencies.

CRIMARIO II offers all public services involved in Law Enforcement at sea, in the Indo Pacific Region, the opportunity of participating in Regional Maritime Security Exercises, either alone or in partnership with other countries/regional/international organisations. 

The primary goals of the exercises are to practice inter-agency work or cooperation and coordination at regional and national levels, whilst also testing available Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs) that deal with coping with such situations. 

More generally, the objectives of the exercises are: 

• To review and exercise security contingency plans against maritime security threats. 
• To practice the command, control, coordination and communications arrangements. 
• To exercise the responses to specific maritime security threats. 
• To examine their readiness and ability to share information. 
• To validate new processes and resources to be deployed. 
• To practice inter-agency work at regional and national levels.
• To get acquainted with IORIS as a tool of communication.

The Tabletop /Command post exercises are conducted through the extensive use of the project web-based info sharing and operational coordination tool IORIS. 

CRIMARIO II TTX/CPX give Law Enforcement agencies the opportunity to examine their readiness and ability to share information, react in a timely manner and implement initial responses, through a series of simulated suspect behaviours at sea. The scenarios for these exercises can cover different themes (e.g. piracy, IUUF, smuggling, etc.) and are agreed with all participants. 

This activity contributes towards one of the main objectives of the CRIMARIO II project: to enhance maritime security and safety in the Indo-Pacific by supporting the region to develop its own maritime domain awareness (MDA) and law enforcement capacities.  

To promote regional maritime security in the Indo Pacific, the project participates in regional exercises. Examples include Cutlass Express (CE), a USAFRICOM annual maritime exercise conducted by the United States Naval Forces Africa (NAVAF).

For more information: olivier.bezier@crimario.eu