NASSAU, Bahamas - The Rhode Island Army National Guard concluded a week long military exchange on Dec. 3 under the State Partnership Program with the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.
Six military police officers of the 43rd Military Police Brigade flew from Rhode Island to Nassau to conduct the five day event at Her Majesty's Bahamian Ship Coral Harbour.
The exchange covered a myriad of military policing techniques including the use of force, civil disturbance, defensive tactics, search procedures, and crime scene investigations.
This exchange in tactics and techniques comes as the RBDF expands the capabilities of its military police force.
December marks the five year anniversary of the Rhode Island National Guard (RING) State Partnership with The Commonwealth of the Bahamas, which has generated a series of cooperative initiatives to ensure security, support cooperation and foster future economic opportunities.
The partnership directly supports the broad national interests and security cooperation goals of the United States and The Bahamas through a series of technical exchanges throughout The Commonwealth and in the state of Rhode Island.
The Bahamas and Rhode Island (“The Ocean State”) share many similarities including a common ancestral heritage, coastal setting, and a tourism-based economy.
The cityscape in Newport, R.I. bares an uncanny resemblance to locations in Nassau, Spanish Wells, and Harbour Island.
The layout of Nassau and Newport are similar as both cities were planned by British colonists who settled in Newport in1639 and The Bahamas in 1647.
This was the twelfth event between the Bahamas and the State of Rhode Island this year.