WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US guided missile destroyer Cole has arrived in the port of Split, Croatia on the Adriatic coast as part of a mission to further relations with partners in Europe, the US Navy announced in a press release on Tuesday.
"We look forward to strengthening our relationship with our European partners and continuing our commitment to promote regional, economic, energy and food security," the ship’s commanding officer David Wroe stated in the release.
Croatia is in the US 6th Fleet's area of operation. The US 6th Fleet is headquartered in Italy and patrols about half of the Atlantic Ocean, from the North Pole to Antarctica, as well as the Adriatic, Baltic, Barents, Black, Caspian, Mediterranean and North seas.
In October 2000, the Cole was attacked by the al-Qaeda terrorist group as the ship was refueling in Yemen's port of Aden. Seventeen US sailors were killed and 39 injured in the attack.
