The Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) Eastern and Western Fleets began two different exercises at the Kingdom’s east and west coast on Sunday (Mar 21).
Confrontation 4 Exercise
The Eastern Fleet “Confrontation 4” exercise aim is to prepare for attacks against the Kingdom’s oil installations. The exercise includes units from the Eastern Fleet, the Ministry of Interior represented by the Eastern Province Border Guards, the Presidency of State Security, and the Ministry of Energy represented by Saudi Aramco and Aramco Gulf Operations Company.
The five-day exercise is taking place at King Abdulaziz Naval Base in Jubail in the Kingdom’s Eastern Province, the Ministry of Defense said.
The exercise along the Persian Gulf coast aims to raise the “readiness and preparedness of all participating units to confront terrorist operations against oil installations,” the ministry said. It will also improve the level of coordination and information exchange, and unify leadership and communication between the participating units.
Maj. Gen. Majid bin Hazza Al-Qahtani, commander of the Eastern Fleet, said the exercise would contribute to “achieving the security and safety of vital installations and oil fields.”
Al-Fulk 4 (Sea Vessels 4) Exercise
RSNF Western Fleet also began a mixed exercise with their Sudanese counterparts at the King Faisal Naval Base, in the port city of Jeddah on the Red Sea the ministry said. The Al-Fulk 4 (Sea Vessels 4) exercises will continue until Thursday.
“The goal of the joint military exercises of the Saudi Arabian and Sudanese navies is to exchange experience and increase combat readiness with the participation of the marines, private maritime security units, naval aviation groups, ships and patrol boats from the kingdom’s Western Fleet, as well as develop the process of command and control over the course of the military operations to ensure free shipping and maritime security in the Red Sea,” a senior Saudi military said at the opening ceremony, broadcast by the ministry on Twitter on Sunday.
The inaugural edition of the Al-Fulk drills was held in the city of Port Sudan on the Red Sea in 2013.
The Sudanese naval forces units participating in the drills arrived at the port last week and were received by the Royal Saudi Naval Forces, represented by the Western Fleet.
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