A Type 23 frigate of the UK Royal Navy, HMS St Albans, has played a key role in the week-long ‘Stakenet’ exercise in the Gulf.
The Portsmouth-based frigate participated in the exercise alongside contingents from the US, the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Run under the banner of Combined Task Force 152 (CTF 152), Stakenet is an annual exercise that emphasises maritime infrastructure protection including the oil rigs and gas terminals of the Gulf from the shores of Kuwait, Iraq and the UAE.
St Albans’s operations officer Lieutenant Commander Will King said, “Stakenet is the first opportunity we’ve had to work alongside our partners in the region, and we’ve been very impressed with the task force as a whole.
“Its ability to work together and defend these vital installations has been excellent and the success we’ve had in Stakenet indicates that, as part of CTF 152, St Albans is well positioned to contribute to security and stability in the Gulf,” he added.
