Pakistan Navy assumes command of Middle East counter-piracy task force

The Pakistan Navy assumed command of Combined Maritime Forces’ (CMF) counter-piracy focused task force during a change-of-command ceremony in Manama, Bahrain on Wednesday, January 22.

Turkish Navy Rear Admiral Rustu Sezer turned over command of Combined Task Force (CTF) 151 to Pakistan Navy Commodore Sohail Azmie during the ceremony.

Since assuming command in July, Sezer oversaw ships supporting the task force as they conducted multinational exercises to hone skills and promote transnational relationships. Ships also routinely conducted maritime patrols in the Gulf of Aden to directly suppress piracy outside territorial waters of coastal states, in coordination with the European Union Naval Force.

This was Turkey's seventh time in command of CTF 151 and the eleventh time for Pakistan.

CTF 151 was established as a multinational task force in January 2009, and is one of five operational task forces under CMF. In conjunction with the European Union Naval Force (EUNAVFOR), and together with independently deployed naval ships, CTF 151 helps to patrol the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor.

CMF’s other task forces include CTF 150, which conducts maritime security operations outside the Arabian Gulf against threats from no-state actors; CTF 152, dedicated to maritime security in the Arabian Gulf; CTF 153, providing maritime security in the Red Sea; and CTF 154, which delivers maritime training.