 The At-to-Sea phase of Cutlass Express 2013 has begun on the waters of East Africa. Multinational maritime forces, soldiers and sailors successfully completed an at sea operation in Djibouti recently. This scenario is one of many during the exercise that involved boarding teams conducting operations against illegal maritime activities, including illegal fishing, illicit trafficking and counter piracy. This exercise is most important is one tool to build our capability in the region, in the maritime issue, for building the skills about how to counter piracy and illegal fishing. Boarding teams from various nations were challenged to standardize their tactics and ensure interoperability across the East African region. Reporting from Djibouti, Djibouti, I'm Staff Sergeant Antoinette Gibson.