The three-week training was organized in collaboration with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency; the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation; and U.S. Army Special Forces.
Thirty-five participants successfully completed the program.
The course of instruction is a three-week integrated training course consisting of interdiction skills and basic narcotics/law enforcement skills.
The intent was to instruct law enforcement personnel in investigatory and interdiction skill sets focusing on execution of counter-drug operations in an urban environment.
All the participants received training in firearms, undercover operations, terrorism/counter-terrorism, tactical combat casualty care, sensitive site exploitation, evidence collection and processing, interviewing and interrogation techniques, and chain of custody.
At the opening ceremony Aug. 1, U.S. Ambassador to the FSM Peter A. Prahar highlighted the importance of preparedness and professionalism on the front lines of public safety, as “no country or community, no matter how remote, is immune to the threats posed by transnational crime and terrorism.
The huge Exclusive Economic Zones surrounding your three countries, for example, are vulnerable to many crimes — including illegal fishing; transit of weapons, drugs, and other contraband; transnational crime; and human trafficking.”
In honor of the trainers and students, Prahar hosted a dinner reception at his residence on Aug. 12.
Noting that “being a police officer is a [tough] job —one that doesn’t get the rewards and recognitions it deserves,” Prahar encouraged participants to capitalize on the knowledge of their trainers, who represented “some of the best law enforcement agencies the U.S. government has to offer.”
In turn, Prahar expressed pride in the U.S.-Micronesia partnership illustrated in the multilateral efforts to enhance policing capacity in the region: “the U.S. is proud to have law enforcement professionals from the FSM, Palau and the Marshall Islands as partners.”
