26 March 2025
Australian-led Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) Combined Task Force 153 (CTF153) has refocused on its core maritime security mission after handing over responsibility for Operation Prosperity Guardian to a United States Navy task force.
Effective February 1, Commander CTF153 Captain Jorge McKee handed over the presence and information-sharing mission to US Navy Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 50 on the order of CMF Commander Vice Admiral George Wikoff USN.
DESRON 50, the surface warfare task force under US Naval Forces Central Command, will continue the commitment of Operation Prosperity Guardian (OPG) to freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce in the Southern Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab and Western Gulf of Aden.
CFT153 has refocused on upholding the rules-based international order by countering non-state actors using the high seas for illicit activities including piracy, smuggling and narcotics trafficking.
“CMF’s CTF153 has done a spectacular job leading OPG and I thank all of the members who committed to this important mission,” Vice Admiral Wikoff said.
“There will be no change to the important role OPG contributes to regional maritime security.
“DESRON 50 brings immediate continuity to the mission.”
Announced in December 2023 as part of the international community’s response to unlawful attacks by Houthi rebels on merchant shipping in the Red Sea region, OPG brought together ships, personnel and information support from more than 20 nations.
Vice Admiral Wikoff said CMF personnel participating in OPG “performed their duties with exceptional professionalism".
The Joint Maritime Information Center, established in February 2024 as part of the OPG information sharing mission, will expand its role within the CMF as an authoritative information source for regional maritime reporting.
'CTF153 has done a spectacular job leading OPG and I thank all of the members who committed to this important mission.'
Australia assumed command of CTF153 from October 1, 2024, from Italy, which had led the task force since April 3, 2024. CTF153 was under US leadership at the time OPG was established.
Established on April 17, 2022, CTF153 is one of five task forces under CMF. Its mission is to deter and impede illicit non-state actors in some of the world’s most important shipping lanes connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Indian Ocean and the greater Middle East region.
CMF, a 46-nation naval partnership, is headquartered in Bahrain and is the world’s largest multinational naval partnership, committed to upholding the rules-based international order at sea.
It promotes security, stability and prosperity across about 3.2 million square miles of international waters, encompassing some of the world’s most important shipping lanes.
