VICTORIA, Seychelles — The 15th Cutlass Express Exercise 2025 is currently taking place in Seychelles, with regional naval and coast guard forces joining forces to combat illicit maritime activities in the Western Indian Ocean. The exercise, organised by the Regional Coordination and Operations Centre (RCOC) at Bois de Rose, brings together African coastal states and island nations to practise coordinated responses to piracy, drug trafficking and illegal fishing.
Speaking at a press conference at the RCOC, the centre’s director, Sam Gonthier, said the architectural format of the exercise has been set up in a way that African coastal states and island nations can work together and practise the way they normally do. He noted that the regional format has enhanced capabilities to do better. ‘Seychelles has been extremely responsive in operations with us as the regional centre and I would like to express my gratitude to the Seychelles Coast Guard for the operations that it has conducted with us,’ Mr Gonthier said.
A special feature of this year’s exercise is the use for the first time of a Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, equipped with sensors and weapons systems for anti-submarine warfare. The aircraft has been supporting the exercise with real-time tracking of vessels at sea and coordination for the boarding teams by various coast guards. The exercise comes at a crucial moment, with piracy off the Somali coast having escalated sharply and the Red Sea experiencing unprecedented instability.
