HONOLULU - The U.S. Coast Guard has completed Tui Moana, a two-week operation to safeguard the invaluable marine resources of Pacific Island nations and the Western Central Pacific Ocean, Jun. 12, 2024. –
Operation Tui Moana is part of Operation Blue Pacific, an overarching multi-mission Coast Guard endeavor promoting security, safety, sovereignty, and economic prosperity in the Pacific while strengthening relationships between partner nations.
The wide-ranging operation was conducted alongside the Pacific Quadrilateral Defense Coordinating Group (Pacific QUAD), in support of the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) and its members.
The FFA coordinated Tui Moana to detect and deter illegal fishing activities and tackle non-compliance with international fisheries across the nine participating Pacific Island countries. The operation reinforces the conservation work of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC).
“The Coast Guard put into action the recent maritime law enforcement bilateral agreement with Samoa,.” said U.S. Chargé d'Affaires at U.S. Embassy Apia, Samoa, Noriko Horiuchi. “Conducting air surveillance of their exclusive economic zone from May 20-24, with two riders from Samoa ’s Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and Police Maritime Division onboard the aircraft.”
The joint efforts for Operation Tui Moana covered over 2.45 million square miles, with the U.S. Coast Guard contributing:
• 306, 960 nautical miles flown
• 968 total minutes on multiple scenes
• 23 vessels surveyed
• 335,760 nautical miles total searchable area
While engaged in the region, the Coast Guard conducted aerial flights to capture imagery of fishing vessels potentially operating illegally within the Samoan and Tongan exclusive economic zones, and in the high seas pocket nearby.
“Operation Tui Moana reflects the Foreign Fishery Agency’s mission to prevent overfishing in the Pacific Ocean and help our neighbors protect their natural resources,” added Horiuchi.
Located in Honolulu, U.S. Coast Guard District Fourteen covers more than 14 million square miles of land and sea, conducting operations over the Hawaiian Islands, American Samoa, Saipan, Guam, Singapore and Japan.
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