Kingdom to get five US naval patrol boats by August

Manama : Bahrain will receive five US-made Mk V naval patrol boats by August this year, according to notices posted on the US Federal Business Opportunities (FBO) website on April 11 and 12.

“The first notice said that US Military Sealift Command is looking to charter a cargo ship to carry four Mk V craft with related equipment from Naval Station Norfolk to Thessaloniki, Greece, and two to Bahrain. The second notice said US Military Sealift Command is looking to charter a cargo ship to carry a single Mk VI patrol boat from Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego to the US naval base on Guam and three Mk V craft with related equipment to Bahrain,” Jane’s Information Group, a British publishing company specialising in military information, reported yesterday.

“The delivery dates for the two ships heading to Bahrain in opposite directions around the world were both given as August 1. The US Defence Security Cooperation Agency’s Excess Defence Articles database shows that Bahrain requested two Mk V craft in 2014 and three in 2016,” the publication said.

No announcements were made by the Royal Bahrain Naval Force yet, but the boats are being procured to strengthen the Kingdom’s naval security, as attempts to smuggle weapons, terrorists and drugs to and from Bahrain through the seas have increased lately as confirmed by the authorities.