Tuesday, 15 June 2010

Pacific Partnership 2010 Visits Cambodia for the First Time

http://www.dvidshub.net/

via Khmer NZ News Media

Posted: 06.14.2010

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia - At the invitation of the Government of Cambodia, the hospital ship USNS Mercy and JDS Kunisaki have arrived in Cambodia June 15 to visit Cambodia and cooperate with the Cambodian government on medical, dental, and engineering projects as a part of Pacific Partnership 2010.

Pacific Partnership 2010 is the fifth in a series of annual U.S. Pacific Fleet humanitarian and civic assistance endeavors aimed at strengthening regional partnerships and increasing interoperability with host nations, partner nations, U.S. interagency groups, and international humanitarian and relief organizations.

Pacific Partnership 2010 brings together military medical and engineering professionals from Australia, Canada, France, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the U.S. Medical personnel from Cambodia will work with the PP10 team to provide medical care in partnership with their American and international counterparts.

Pacific Partnership 2010 participants for this visit also include volunteers from the non-governmental organizations East Meets West Foundation, International Relief Teams, Latter-day Saint Charities, Operation Smile, Project Hope, Vets Without Borders, World Vets, and University of California San Diego Pre-Dental Society. In addition, Japanese NGO composition consists of HUMA, Civic Force, Operation UNIES, and Peace Winds Japan.

During the visit to Sihanouk province from June 15 - 28, the Pacific Partnership team will conduct surgery aboard Mercy, as well as numerous medical, dental, engineering, and veterinary civic action programs ashore. In addition to Sihanouk province, PP10 teams will be providing assistance in other provinces, specifically in the provinces of Ratanakiri, Kampong Cham, Kampong Spue, and Kampot. Engineers will be drilling three wells, one in Kandal province and two in Takeo province. The Pacific Fleet Band will give public musical performances in Sihanoukville.

One of Mercy’s primary missions is to provide mobile surgical hospital services for use in disaster or humanitarian relief missions and other peacetime operations. Mercy is currently deployed from its homeport of San Diego, Calif., and has been configured with special medical equipment and a multiple-specialty medical team of uniformed and civilian health care providers to provide a range of services both afloat and ashore during this deployment.

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