Скачать или смотреть U.S. Coast Guard Interdicts Drug Smuggling Vessel (Semi Submersible) in the Pacific Ocean

The U.S. Coast Guard Drug Interdiction Program is a critical national security mission aimed at combating transnational organized crime by detecting, disrupting, and interdicting the maritime flow of illicit drugs, primarily cocaine and marijuana, before they reach U.S. shores.

Here are the key aspects of the program:

Primary Mission and Focus
*Lead Agency on the High Seas:* The Coast Guard is the lead U.S. federal agency for maritime drug interdiction in international waters, particularly in the Western Hemisphere Transit Zone (WHTZ)—a vast area covering the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
*Strategy:* The core strategy is to remove illegal drugs as far from U.S. shores as possible, typically closer to their source in South America, where drug shipments are in their most concentrated bulk form and most vulnerable to interdiction.
*Legal Authority:* The legal basis for the program is primarily the **Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (MDLEA)**, which gives the Coast Guard the authority to board, search, and seize vessels suspected of drug trafficking on the high seas.

Operational Approach
The Coast Guard uses a multi-faceted, layered approach involving technology, intelligence, and partnerships:

*Intelligence and Surveillance:* Operations begin with extensive surveillance and intelligence gathering, often coordinated through the **Joint Interagency Task Force–South (JIATF-South)**, which detects and monitors suspicious air and maritime drug transit.
*Assets:* The Coast Guard deploys a variety of assets, including:
*High-Speed Cutters:* Essential for long-range patrols and rapid response.
*Boats and Aircraft:* Including high-endurance cutters with embarked helicopters (often **HITRON**—Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron—crews that use airborne use of force tactics).
*Law Enforcement Detachments (LEDETs):* Small, specialized teams of Coast Guardsmen who are deployed aboard U.S. Navy and allied warships to grant them the necessary law enforcement authority for an interdiction.
*Countering Smuggling Tactics:* The Coast Guard continuously adapts to evolving smuggling tactics, such as the use of nearly submerged vessels known as **Self-Propelled Semi-Submersibles (SPSS)**.

Partnerships
The program relies heavily on collaboration with other agencies and international partners:

*Domestic Agencies:* The Coast Guard works closely with the Department of Defense (DoD), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and other federal entities.
*International Cooperation:* A crucial element is the network of *maritime counterdrug bilateral agreements* with over 40 partner nations. These agreements allow U.S. assets to operate in or near partner nations' territorial seas and prevent smugglers from using those areas as a sanctuary.

Impact and Challenges
*Seizures:* The program successfully interdicts significant quantities of illicit drugs. For example, between 2018 and 2022, the Coast Guard intercepted and seized **888 metric tons of cocaine**, valued at billions of dollars.
*Challenges:* The program faces persistent operational challenges that can affect its effectiveness, including:
*Asset Readiness:* Maintaining availability targets for critical vessels like Medium Endurance Cutters.
*Acquisition Delays:* Slow replacement of aging vessels can create capability gaps.
*Workforce Shortages:* Difficulties in maintaining the necessary number of personnel to meet mission demands.

In essence, the Drug Interdiction Program is a robust, multi-agency, and international effort that operates far from U.S. shores to disrupt the financial and operational networks of transnational organized crime that use the maritime domain to smuggle drugs into the country.