Pointe Blanche Naval Support Point ( Dutch: Marinesteunpunt Pointe Blanche; MSTPPB) is a base of the

Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy (, ) is the Navy, maritime service branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. It traces its history to 8 January 1488, making it the List of navies, third-oldest navy in the world. During the 17th and early 18th centurie ...

that is located on

Sint Maarten Sint Maarten () is a Countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean region of North America. With a population of 58,477 as of June 2023 on an area of , it encompasses ...

. Since 2014 a detachment of the

Netherlands Marine Corps The Royal Netherlands Marine Corps () is the elite naval infantry corps of the Royal Netherlands Navy, one of the four Netherlands Armed Forces, Armed Forces of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The marines trace their origins to the establishme ...

is permanently stationed at the base. The marines of this detachment are nicknamed Green Angels by the locals. They provide military support to Sint Maarten,

Saba Saba may refer to: Places * Saba (island), an island of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea * Sabá, a municipality in the department of Colón, Honduras * Șaba or Șaba-Târg, the Romanian name for Shabo, a village in Ukraine * Saba, ...

and

Sint Eustatius Sint Eustatius, known locally as Statia, is an island in the Caribbean. It is a Caribbean Netherlands, special municipality (officially "Public body (Netherlands), public body") of the Netherlands. The island is in the northern Leeward Islands ...

History

Pointe Blanche Naval Support Point was established in 2013 at Pointe Blanche, Sint Maarten. The base was established to meet the local government's desire for a military presence on Sint Maarten. While the base was established in 2013, the first twenty marines arrived a year later on 4 March 2014. In total there are 29 persons stationed at the base, which includes a staff consisting of 9 persons. Together they form the Sint Maarten Marine Detachment (Dutch: Detachment Mariniers Sint-Maarten; DETSXM). The

detachment can provide support for various matters, ranging from search and rescue operations to assisting the local police with prison searches. At the base the marines have access to two FRISC's and near the base there are several training facilities. These facilities have been improved and expanded over the years. The marines stationed at Pointe Blanche Naval Support Point frequently take part in exercises, such as the Hurricane Relief Exercise (HUREX). They also work together with the local police, fire department, emergency medical services and the Sint Maarten Volunteer Corps.Potters et al. (2024), p. 210.

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* * * * {{coord missing, Netherlands Buildings and structures in Sint Maarten Installations of the Royal Netherlands Navy 2013 establishments in the Netherlands