Foreign Secretary William Hague Thanks HMS Montrose on South Africa Visit

The crew of HMS Montrose has been praised by the Foreign Secretary during his visit to Africa.

William Hague visited the Type 23 frigate during her maintenance period in South Africa.

Mr Hague spoke with various personnel before writing on his Twitter page: “Met and thanked crew of HMS Montrose, docked in Simon’s Town here in South Africa.”

Mr Hague was in South Africa on a diplomatic visit before leaving for Botswana – the first time a British Foreign Secretary has been there in 26 years.

While with HMS Montrose he discussed defence co-operation with senior members of the South African military.
Cdr Jonathan Lett, HMS Montrose’s commanding officer, said:

“It was a real honour to host the Foreign Secretary on board Montrose, and a fantastic opportunity for him to speak to the ship’s company about our work.

“With the visit taking place during our maintenance period he was able to see first-hand the close relationship we have with our hosts and the broad range of work being undertaken.

“We were able to discuss the UK and South Africa’s common commitment to counter-piracy operations. Montrose’s experience during a 2010 deployment off Somalia allowed us to explore tactics and techniques with the South African Defence Force, with the ship’s Lynx Mark 8 helicopter currently disembarked and working with the South African Air Force on developing their skills in this area.”

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Naval Today Staff , February 17, 2012; Image: royalnavy