AFM ‘shuts down’ Canadian Navy firing excercise off Malta

Canadian media have tonight reported how a Canadian warship on its way to the eastern Mediterranean caused a bit of ruckus off the Maltese coast, when the Halifax-based frigate HMCS Charlottetown was stopped by the AFM while conducting a small-arms firing exercise on the deck of the ship.

The Canadian Navy explained that it was routine training for the counter-terrorism mission the ship is about to begin.

Canadian sailors were firing 9 mm pistols towards the empty sea when they were ordered to stop by the AFM.

Lt. Mark Fifield, a spokesman for the Royal Canadian Navy in Ottawa, says "Maltese Coast Guard officials hadn't authorised the exercise and shut it down after being notified over the radio."

Under international convention, warships conducting any firing drills in the waters of other countries are required to warn other vessels in the area and the host nation.

Fifield said the skipper of the Charlottetown didn't realise his warship had crossed into Maltese waters, but added that the radio warning had still been broadcast.

"No other vessels were in proximity to Charlottetown at the time of the incident and there was no risk to public safety," he said.

Canada has meanwhile delivered a note of apology to Malta over the incident and Fifield said it was something the navy "deeply regretted."

He said the weapons drill, conducted to ensure sailors are ready for the boarding of suspicious vessels, later resumed but only after the warship had hit international waters.

The frigate was on its way to join the NATO standing fleet, which is conducting counter-terrorism patrols. It was ordered to take up the post by the Conservative government, which wants to maintain a presence in the region given the instability and uprisings in Arab countries.