Operation Caribbe is the Canadian Armed Forces contribution to the elimination of illegal trafficking in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean by organized crime. The operation began in 2006 and its mandate has been altered twice since then. History In 2005, Canada agreed to send CP-140 Aurora aircraft for maritime detection purposes in the Caribbean Sea. Operation Caribbe began in November 2006. In October 2010 the mission was expanded with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Canada and the United States that allowed law enforcement detachments from the United States Coast Guard to operate from Canadian warships deployed on Operation Caribbe. In January 2012, Operation Caribbe was folded into the umbrella operation, Operation Martillo, which is a joint multinational effort led by the United States to eliminate illicit trafficking in the Caribbean Sea, the eastern Pacific Ocean and the coastal areas of the Central American nations. Command structure Subject to the operational command of Operation Martillo, any forces assigned to Operation Caribbe are under the operational direction of the United States Southern Command's Joint Interagency Task Force South. For the Canadian Armed Forces, nation command is maintained by the Canadian Joint Operations Command. The Canadian forces deployed to Operation Caribbe thus far have been warships from the Royal Canadian Navy and CP-140 Auroras and crew from the Royal Canadian Air Force. Mission Canadian warships deployed on Operation Caribbe work in a support role, locating and tracking any vessels or targets of interest. Unless provided with law enforcement officers from the United States Coast Guard, the Canadian warships do not participate in the interdiction of those targets. The CP-140 Aurora aircraft and their crews patrol in international airspace over the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the eastern Pacific Ocean to track targets of interest. They do not participate in the interdiction of suspicious targets. Results In 2009, and were deployed to the Caribbean Sea. In 2010, the Royal Canadian Navy vessels , , Toronto and were deployed. The warships intercepted more than 29 metric tons of illegal drugs. In 2011, Algonquin, , Toronto, , , , , , and seven CP-140 Auroras were deployed. St. John's aided in recovering of cocaine from a scuttled vessel. Toronto handed over a small boat to the Nicaraguan Navy which contained 68 bales of cocaine. In 2012, , , Goose Bay, Kingston, and CP-140 Aurora aircraft on five occasions