The Halifax-class frigate covers three critical “choke points” in the region: the Suez Canal, the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz, the artery through which about 20 per cent of the world’s oil supply flows.
More than 17 million barrels of crude passed through the Strait of Hormuz every day last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
HMCS Charlottetown has been patrolling the Arabian Sea region since the end of April with the Combined Maritime Forces counter-terrorism group.
The ship’s commander says much of the day is spent developing sources in order to spot suspicious activity.
On May 5, the Halifax frigate intercepted a drug deal between a small skiff and a dhow in the Gulf of Aden, Cmdr. Wade Carter said. The gulf is part of the Arabian Sea nestled between Yemen and Somalia.
“Once the skiff saw us approaching, they threw the drugs overboard so as not to be captured with them in hand,” he said in a media teleconference Friday.
“Many of them sank, but we recovered about 600 pounds (of hashish).”
No one was arrested during the seizure.
Much of the profits from the drug trade in the region is funnelled back to terrorist organizations, Carter said.
The combined task force has seized $50 million in drugs this year, the officer said.
Members of HMCS Charlottetown recently boarded another ship they suspected of drug trafficking, but couldn’t find anything on board.
The crew will return to the Martimes at the end of the summer.
Original Article
Source: the chronicle herald
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