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April 2, 2012
COTONOU, Benin - Ambassador William Bellamy, director of Africa Center for Strategic Studies, and Major General Charles Hooper, U.S. Africa Command, listen as (not pictured) Rear Admiral E.O. Ogbor, chief of Training and Operations, Nigerian Naval Headquarters, reads a Memorandum of Understanding during the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Maritime Safety and Security Conference held in Cotonou, Benin, March 26-29, 2012. More than 250 representatives from more than 20 African nations attended the conference, which was held to facilitate cooperation between both African communities in order to provide regional maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea. The event was organized and facilitated by U.S. Africa Command and Africa Center for Strategic Studies. (U.S. AFRICOM photo by Staff Sergeant Olufemi A. Owolabi)