By Jessica Hrabosky, Office of Strategic Communications
National Counterterrorism Center Director Christy Abizaid and Deputy Director Steve Vanech met with members of the U.S. Coast Guard located on Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Nov. 2.
NCTC leadership received a briefing on the intelligence role the Coast Guard provides to the counterterrorism community throughout the National Capital Region. Additionally, Abizaid and Vanech participated in an area familiarization ride on a small response boat to better understand what the Coast Guard does during an active mission.
The Maritime Safety and Security Teams, also known as MSST, is a Coast Guard counterterrorism team that protects local maritime assets. The team provides waterborne and limited shore-side counterterrorism force protection for strategic shipping channels, high interest vessels and critical infrastructure.
NCTC works closely with the Coast Guard to leverage its unique authorities in both the national security intelligence enterprise and the law enforcement intelligence enterprise to provide valuable perspective on the counterterrorism threat environment both domestically and internationally.
The partnership between NCTC and the Coast Guard provides vital contributions to the CT mission. The briefing and ride along showcased how these two organizations collaborate to protect our national security.