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LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) - The U.S. military said Wednesday it sent a ship to Africa's oil-rich Gulf of Guinea to train west African nations to combat threats including terrorism, drug trafficking and petroleum theft.
The Coast Guard cutter USCG Bear, which is attached to the U.S. Sixth Fleet based in Italy, arrived last week with 100 sailors on board and will be in the Gulf of Guinea for about one month, said U.S. military spokesman Lt. David Luckett by telephone from Naples.
The United States has been stepping up its military cooperation with politically unstable Gulf of Guinea states, particularly regional heavyweight Nigeria, over the past few years. The Gulf of Guinea holds as much as 10 percent of world oil reserves, and its oil exports could become even more vital if unrest further affects crude supplies from the Middle East.
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