ISLAMABAD: French Navy handed over command of multinational Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150) to Pakistan Navy at an impressive change of command ceremony held at Headquarters US NAVCENT, Bahrain.
Rear Admiral Naveed Ahmed Rizvi of Pakistan Navy took over the command of CTF-150 from Rear Admiral Olivier Lebas of French Navy.
It is the 10th time that Pakistan Navy has been entrusted with this honour. Vice Admiral Kevin M Donegan, commander of the US Naval Force Central Command & commander Combined Maritime Forces, presided over the ceremony.
At the outset of the ceremony, Rear Admiral Olivier Lebas, the outgoing commander CTF-150, presented resume of CTF 150’s recent accomplishments. Commander Maritime Forces Vice Admiral Kevin M Donegan, during his address also congratulated him for a job well done.
While addressing the audience, Rear Admiral Naveed Ahmed Rizvi assured that his team was fully prepared to shoulder this prestigious responsibility. He also lauded the outgoing French Navy team and their dedicated efforts to achieve objectives of CTF-150 during their tenure of command and reaffirmed his resolve to continue operations with the same zeal and zest. He further highlighted that relations between Pakistan Navy and coalition Navies continue to strengthen due to our focused commitment in support of collaborative maritime security to bring peace and stability to this region.
Combined Task Force 150 is one of the three Task Forces within the ambit of Combined Maritime Forces (CMF). It is a Multinational Coalition for Counter Terrorism operations at sea in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) with the mission to promote Maritime Security at sea, deter, deny and disrupt acts of terrorism while countering related illicit activities at sea. The number of participating countries in CMF has risen to 31 over the period of time.
Prior to present Command tenure, Pakistan Navy had the exclusive distinction of commanding CTF-150 for nine times and Multinational Combined Task Force 151 (Counter Piracy Task Force) eight times which is a manifestation of the trust and respect enjoyed by Pakistan Navy among coalition partners. Over the years, Pakistan Navy has not only served the maritime interests of Pakistan but has also very effectively fulfilled its international obligations.
The ceremony was attended by Pakistan’s Ambassador to Bahrain Javed Malik and several high-ranking military officials from the coalition countries.
Published in Daily Times, August 18th 2017.
