On Tuesday, January 24th, two ships of NATO member states, USS James E. Williams of the United States of America and TCG Barbaros of Turkiye, entered the Port of Bar in Montenegro with the aim of strengthening maritime security in the waters of NATO member countries and bolstering defense relations in the region. This is the first time since 2018 that a NATO Maritime Group has visited Montenegro.
USS James E. Williams is the flagship of Standing NATO Maritime Group Two and is commanded by Rear Admiral Micheal S. Sciretta, who emphasized to local media NATO’s strong working relationship with the Montenegrin Navy, and NATO’s commitment to preserving the security and national sovereignty of its members.
On January 27th, Standing NATO Maritime Group Two hosted U.S. Ambassador Judy Rising Reinke and Montenegrin Acting Minister of Defense Filip Adzic onboard USS James E. Williams for a reception to honor the strong alliance between NATO and Montenegro.
