US COAST GUARD Intel Class

Twenty students from more than 10 Caribbean countries attend a class conducted by Marines from Intel Support Battalion, Marine Forces Reserve, March 9 as part of exercise Tradewinds 2011. The class was conducted to teach the students the structure, methods, approaches and techniques of recognizing and dealing with criminal networks. Much of the material in the class is based on the work conducted by U.S. Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan to combat insurgent networks. Jamaican Coast Guard Petty Officer Noel Christie said the class taught him the basics of criminal networks and allowed him the opportunity to network with his peers in other countries. “This class gives us a diverse way of looking at crime,” said Christie. “It’s a big bonus. A lot of our countries have the same intent and sometimes share borders; with collaboration we have a lot more to bring to the table.” Tradewinds is a joint-combined, interagency exercise involving U.S. personnel from the Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Army, Navy, Air Force, National Guard, Joint-interagency Task Force-South, Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation along with forces from: Antigua and Barbuda (host nation), Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Colombia, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, St. Kitts-Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Suriname, Trinidad-Tobago.