Army Gen. Laura Richardson, the commander of U.S. Southern Command, speaks with members of the Public Force of Costa Rica on Feb. 7, 2023. US Embassy Photo
Recent Chinese actions, like financing a $3 billion container port, establishing a space monitoring station near the Straits of Magellan and buying lithium mining operations in three South American nations, pose increasing risks to U.S. security, senior military commanders said Wednesday.
The Chinese activities are a “relentless march” to...
Retiring Navy Adm. Craig S. Faller holds an American flag that was presented to him, at U.S. Southern Command headquarters, Doral, Fla., on Oct. 29, 2021. DoD Photo
Upholding human rights and the rule of law are key tenants in building professionalism in the armed forces across Southern Command, the outgoing commander said in his farewell speech on Friday.
Adm. Craig Faller called that commitment to values “the ethical North Star,” during his change of command in Florida.
By doing that, “we build...
https://news.usni.org/2021/10/31/faller-building-trust-with-partners-key-to-future-of-southcom
Marines with 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, II Marine Expeditionary Force, prepare to board MV-22B Ospreys to deploy to Haiti in support of Joint Task Force-Haiti for a humanitarian-assistance and disaster-relief mission from Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina, Aug. 23, 2021. US Navy Photo
Three U.S. Navy ships and more Marine aircraft have joined in the U.S. effort for disaster relief in Haiti, Pentagon officials said on Tuesday.
The military is on station to support the U.S. Agency...
https://news.usni.org/2021/08/24/more-u-s-navy-ships-marine-aircraft-assist-in-haiti-relief
USS Arlington (LPD-24) transits the Atlantic Ocean on Aug. 14, 2021. US Navy Photo
The Navy is sending the amphibious warship USS Arlington (LPD-24) to assist with the humanitarian aid mission in Haiti in the aftermath of an Aug. 14 earthquake, Pentagon officials said on Tuesday.
The aftermath of the 7.2 magnitude earthquake has killed at least 1,941 and wreaked havoc across the southwestern Tiburon Peninsula. Almost 10,000 people are waiting for medical assistance, according to The Associated...
A deployed Air Station Clearwater Jayhawk helicopter crew medevacs a citizen in Haiti on Aug. 15, 2021. US Coast Guard Photo
The U.S. is preparing to send an amphibious warship to support the ongoing disaster relief efforts in Haiti following a massive earthquake that shook the island nation on Saturday, a defense official told USNI News on Monday.
The amphibious warship will join the ongoing Department of Defense mission in support of U.S. Agency for International Development efforts following...
Adm. Craig Faller, commander of U.S. Southern Command, visited troops assigned to Joint Task Force-Bravo in Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras on Dec. 11, 2020. US Army Photo
China has used the COVID-19 pandemic to rapidly expand its “corrosive, insidious influence” – from money laundering for transnational gangsters to using its own ships to illegally fish protected waters and benefit from illegal logging and mining – “in our neighborhood,” U.S. Southern Command’s top officer said Tuesday.
“I can’t...
Lt. j.g Alexander Fanning uses a radar system in the pilothouse of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Pinckney (DDG-91) on May 28, 2020. US Navy Photo
A U.S. guided-missile destroyer conducted a freedom of navigation operation off the coast of Venezuela, U.S. Southern Command announced on Wednesday.
USS Pinckney (DDG-91) “challenged Venezuela’s excessive maritime claim in international waters,” according to the statement from SOUTHCOM.
“[Venezuela] improperly claims excessive...
USS Nitze (DDG-94) steams through the Gulf of Aden on June 14, 2019. US Navy Photo
A U.S. guided-missile destroyer conducted a freedom of navigation operation off the coast of Venezuela, U.S. Southern Command announced on Tuesday.
USS Nitze (DDG-94) steamed in Venezuela’s exclusive economic zone outside of its territorial sea, according to the SOUTHCOM statement.
“The U.S. Navy ship conducted the operation in international waters outside Venezuela’s 12 nautical mile territorial jurisdiction,”...
https://news.usni.org/2020/06/23/uss-nitze-conducts-freedom-of-navigation-operation-off-venezuela
Sailors man the rails aboard the Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Little Rock (LCS-9) on Feb. 6, 2020
THE PENTAGON – A renewed presence of U.S. warships in Southern Command has military dimensions beyond providing a platform for law enforcement to interdict drug traffickers, the SOUTHCOM commander told USNI News this week.
On Thursday, Littoral Combat Ship USS Little Rock (LCS-9) left for its maiden deployment in the region. It’s the second LCS deployment to SOUTHCOM within the last year,...
USS Detroit (LCS-7) sinks a vessel as a hazard to navigation on Nov. 23, 2019. US Navy Photo
Adm. Craig Faller lauded the ongoing deployment of the Littoral Combat Ship USS Detroit (LCS-7) to U.S. Southern Command while at the same time calling for more Navy support in the region.
The Freedom-class LCS has been operating in U.S. 4th Fleet since November with an embarked Coast Guard law enforcement detachment (LEDET) as part of the SOUTHCOM-led international anti-trafficking effort centered on...