All five ships of UNIFIL’s Maritime Task Force (MTF) recently took part in a joint naval exercise off the coast of Naqoura. The exercise aimed to enhance cooperation and interoperability, and to boost operational readiness.

The exercise, conducted last month, marked the first such activity since last September 2024 and followed the recent arrival of three ships and personnel from Germany, Greece, and Türkiye to the UNIFIL mission.

The participating vessels were the Bangladeshi corvette Sangram, Indonesian corvette Sultan Iskandar Muda, Greek frigate Limnos, Turkish corvette Bandirma, and German frigate Brandenburg. These vessels together form UNIFIL’s naval fleet.

All units operated in close coordination, providing an “impressive demonstration” of interoperability.

“Despite differences in national procedures, equipment and language, all participants demonstrated a high degree of professionalism and cooperation,” said MTF Commander Rear Admiral Richard Kesten of Germany. “The operational readiness and teamwork of the units is at a high level. Such exercises are indispensable for establishing a credible maritime presence.”

UNIFIL’s MTF, established in October 2006, is the first naval component of a UN peacekeeping mission of this scale. It was deployed to support the Lebanese Navy in securing the country’s territorial waters. As part of its mandate, the MTF works closely with the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Navy to enhance the latter’s sustainable operational capacity through joint exercises, training, equipment provision, and technical support. The MTF and the Lebanese Air Force recently resumed joint training after a nearly six-month break.