Amici e Alleati – Friends and Allies

24 August 2024 ATLANTIC OCEAN - The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) is underway completing its final deployment preparations including Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX), but she isn’t alone. 

While it is not a surprise that the flagship of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 8, Harry S. Truman CSG, is operating with Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 1 and its eight aviation squadrons, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 28 with two Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers, and the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser, one unique element of the underway period was Truman’s work alongside the Italian Navy Carlo Bergamini-class frigate ITS Carabiniere (F 593). 

“Working side by side with an allied force is very motivating, especially with a U.S. Carrier Strike Group, the highest expression of power projection in the world,” said Cmdr. Marco Felici, commanding officer of ITS Carabiniere (F 593). “It was an invaluable opportunity to experience a different working and living environment. The best part of it all was sharing different practices and points of view, targeting the same goals.”

In the exercise, ITS Carabiniere operated as part of the Harry S. Truman CSG, which forged personal relationships and tactical acumen that support NATO’s collective defense. COMPTUEXs simulate real-world multi-domain scenarios to provide training, mentorship, and assessment opportunities that increase proficiency and identify areas for improvement. While working as a U.S. national force is critically important, one of the U.S. Navy’s greatest strengths is interoperability with Allies and partners. In recent years, for example, Carabiniere operated in the Mediterranean with multiple U.S. Navy ships and strike groups.

“The integration further strengthens and highlights a unity of intent that is already a ‘fait accompli,’” said Felici. “Our countries’ military alliance benefits in many ways. Our integration strengthens confidence and trust in each other’s competence and capability, thus fostering mutual trust at all levels.”

Just as a U.S. Navy CSG is often a key element of numbered fleet and combatant command operations, they also serve the same role when operating under the authority of a NATO maritime component commander such as Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO). The opportunity for Harry S. Truman, Carabiniere, and CSG teammates to work together ensured that U.S. and Italian Sailors alike – including many first-term Sailors – were able to collaborate in a training environment before an upcoming deployment that may include similar operations.