The U.S. Coast Guard's increasing global role in peacetime engagement takes the agency from the Arctic to the Tropics, from the Caribbean region to the Bering Sea, and to Europe, Africa, and Asia. In the following article, Daniel Wartko, International Policy Specialist, Office of the Coast Guard Commandant, discusses the Coast Guard's wide-ranging international activities and how it works with other nations to prevent conflict, promote democracy, enhance regional stability, and contribute to economic prosperity. Wartko outlines Coast Guard programs to aid Haiti in developing a national coast guard, to help Black Sea nations develop maritime standards, and to encourage discussion with nations in the Middle East on cooperative search and rescue operations and other maritime safety issues.

Since its founding as the Revenue Cutter Service in 1790, the Coast Guard has promoted U.S. security with its distinctive blend of humanitarian, civilian law enforcement, diplomatic, and military capabilities. The Coast Guard is a military, multi-mission, maritime service within the Department of Transportation and is one of the five U.S. Armed Services.

The Coast Guard's unique civil-military character enables it to work effectively with a wide spectrum of international organizations and foreign governments. With military, law enforcement, and humanitarian missions, the Coast Guard is well suited to promote conflict prevention efforts around the world and is a valuable asset available for use by U.S. foreign policy and national security policy planners.

The Coast Guard's international engagement promotes democracy, builds trust and friendship among former adversaries, and contributes to economic prosperity. More than 40 of the world's 70 naval forces are, in essence, coast guards. As such, our forces and missions closely resemble those of many host nations' navies. This enables us to interact with a larger and more diverse number of foreign agencies.

The Coast Guard carefully coordinates its international efforts to ensure that its limited resources are best used to achieve U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives. It is within this framework that the Coast Guard operates overseas and engages internationally for the benefit of the United States and to execute Coast Guard missions. Plans are integrated with the other military services through the Joint Chiefs of Staff and regional Commanders-in-Chief (CINCs). Coast Guard efforts in support of the CINCs are integrated into their respective Theater Engagement Plans.

The Coast Guard cooperates with nations around the world in a number of peacetime missions including efforts to save lives and property at sea, interdict illegal drugs, help the victims of floods and storms, protect the marine environment, provide a safe and efficient maritime transportation system, enforce laws and treaties, and defend maritime borders. Following are highlights of some of those efforts:

The Model Maritime Service Code -- A Common Coast Guard Standard

In 1994, the Coast Guard developed the Model Maritime Service Code (MMSC) as a standard for nations that want to create or improve their maritime services. Many countries request Coast Guard training or equipment to help them address maritime problems. However many of these countries lack an adequate legal structure for their services. For example, some countries were requesting training in maritime law enforcement boarding procedures even though they lacked the legal authority to conduct these activities. The Coast Guard realized that without an adequate legal framework, training and material assistance would not produce sustainable benefits.

The MMSC contains draft generic legislation that is modeled on the U.S. Coast Guard's authority. It describes the fundamental legal authority that a maritime force requires to function effectively as a military service, a law enforcement organization, and a regulatory agency, and it guides nations to base their laws upon existing international norms. By promoting a common maritime service standard around the world, the Coast Guard helps reduce the chances of conflict between neighboring nations. It also promotes cooperation among maritime services by developing agencies with similar mandates and jurisdictions.

For example, the Coast Guard has provided MMSC assistance to the Black Sea nations in an attempt to encourage them to develop compatible maritime standards. Representatives from Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, and Georgia have attended MMSC seminars during which they were able to develop personal connections as they discussed common challenges. As of December 1999, the Coast Guard has worked with eight countries to help them implement the MMSC standards for their own use.

Building Trust in the Middle East

Since 1997 the Coast Guard, the lead U.S. agency in maritime and search and rescue operations, has supported the annual Middle East Maritime Safety Colloquium (MARSAF). The primary objective of MARSAF is to engage the nations of the Middle East in discussions related to search and rescue cooperation and other maritime safety issues. As a confidence- and security-building effort, this colloquium fosters cooperation on an issue with universal appeal -- saving lives at sea -- and lays the groundwork for future cooperation.

In November 1999, the Royal Jordanian Navy hosted MARSAF, which was attended by Bahrain, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, the Palestinian Authority, and Qatar. MARSAF has helped Jordan and Israel coordinate their cooperative efforts in search and rescue, and the colloquium led to the establishment of a joint Israel-Jordan Rescue Coordination Center (RCC) located on the border between the two nations. The RCC is the communications center for all search and rescue efforts in the region.

By encouraging other types of cooperation -- for example, the development of a regional coastal management system -- the United States hopes to create ties that will help combat the potential for future conflict among regional parties. Support in one area, such as search and rescue, leads directly to cooperation in others, including environmental protection and vessel navigation services. The MARSAF organizers hope to build on this existing cooperation to improve marine environmental protection and maritime safety in the Middle East -- whether in the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, or the Persian Gulf. The Coast Guard is prepared to continue support for MARSAF as it expands into such areas as sub-standard commercial shipping and law enforcement issues including piracy.

Haitian Coast Guard Development

Following the international intervention in Haiti that helped restore the elected government in 1994, the Coast Guard was asked to help Haiti develop the Haitian Coast Guard as part of that country's National Police. The political instability in Haiti had many causes, and its effects were felt throughout the region, as thousands of refugees fled to other nations in the Caribbean region. But the Haitian people suffered most intensely as a result of the collapse of governmental institutions, the lack of civilian oversight of the Haitian military, and devastating poverty.

At left, the U.S. Coast Guard rescues Haitian migrants in 1994. At right, a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew practices hoist operations with the crew of the Haitian Coast Guard boat Marie C. Jeune.

By assisting in the development of the Haitian Coast Guard, the United States endeavored to develop a functioning government agency, with civilian oversight, that could address the maritime problems faced by Haiti. Working with the Canadian Coast Guard, the U.S. Coast Guard has provided the Haitian Coast Guard with training and material assistance. The U.S. Coast Guard provides basic and intermediate training that focuses on maintaining a multi-mission maritime force; the long-term success of the Haitian Coast Guard requires the development of a cadre of mid-management. The U.S. Coast Guard trains Haitian Coast Guard personnel in schools in the United States, hosts Haitian Coast Guard officers as ship riders aboard U.S. Coast Guard cutters, and provides on-the-job training that they can use upon returning to Haiti. The United States also has provided the Haitian Coast Guard with patrol boats and other equipment and facilities needed to accomplish its mission.

As a result of this program, Haiti has a functioning coast guard that already has conducted successful operations in search and rescue -- saving more than 80 lives in 1998 -- and maritime law enforcement. The Haitian Coast Guard also stands as a model of good government service for Haiti. By enforcing safety regulations, it is promoting the growth of maritime commerce in Haiti.

Conclusion

As the world shrinks with advances in telecommunications and trade, the Coast Guard's national security role will continue to grow in relevance and importance. Growth in trade will continue as the world's economies become more closely linked, and this will lead to increases in both legitimate shipping and illicit trade.

As we enter the next millennium, swift and decisive multinational action will be needed in response to growing transnational threats. International solutions that have a significant maritime law enforcement component will be needed to combat drug-trafficking, arms smuggling, and money laundering. And in response to the ever present threat of terrorism -- both international and domestic -- the Coast Guard must be prepared to protect the ports and waterways along the 67,200 kilometers of U.S. coastline. In addition, there will be increased pressure on fisheries stocks worldwide and a greater demand to protect those stocks and the maritime environment that supports them.

The Coast Guard will be called upon in the future to continue its support of U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives. Whether in the daily conduct of Coast Guard missions or in military engagement, the United States Coast Guard stands Semper Paratus -- Always Ready -- to support and defend the interests of Americans and fulfill its role as a unique instrument of national security.

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This article reflects the opinion of the author and does not necessarily represent the position or policies of the U.S. Coast Guard.