patrol boat
A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and th ...
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty, is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. , 167 ...
(UNCLOS), had extended an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the shores of all maritime nations, and for small Island nations in the Pacific protecting their EEZ would be an overwhelming problem.
The original patrol boats were designed for a lifetime of approximately thirty years, and, prior to reaching this date, Australia designed and started building replacement vessels. The s are larger, and more capable than the original vessels. But, like the original Pacific Forum boats, they were designed to use
commercial off-the-shelf
Commercial off-the-shelf or commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) products are packaged or canned (ready-made) hardware or software, which are adapted aftermarket to the needs of the purchasing organization, rather than the commissioning of ...
components, so they would be easier to maintain in small isolated shipyards.
Delivery
''Remeliik II'' was scheduled for delivery in June 2020.Melissa Price, Australian
Minister for Defence Industry
In the Government of Australia, the Minister for Defence Industry is currently the Hon Pat Conroy MP since 1 June 2022, following the Australian federal election in 2022.
The Minister for Defence Industry, or previously the Minister of Suppl ...
, handed the vessel over to Paluan officials on September 18, 2020.
The handover was delayed due to the quarantine of the Palauan crew in order prevent the spread of
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickl ...
.
Operational career
''Remeliik II'' was commissioned on December 4, 2020.
On December 15, 2020, ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide ...
'' reported that the ''Remeliik II'' detained a
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of v ...
fishing vessel for illegal fishing. of
sea cucumbers
Sea cucumbers are echinoderms from the class Holothuroidea (). They are marine animals with a leathery skin and an elongated body containing a single, branched gonad. Sea cucumbers are found on the sea floor worldwide. The number of holothuri ...
was found on board the fishing vessel. Sea cucumbers can be sold for $800 per kilogram, in Asian markets.
The detention of the vessel raised potential health concerns. At that time, in December, 2020, Palau had been one of a very small amount of countries that had no confirmed cases of
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickl ...
. The crew of the Chinese vessel were placed in quarantine. Palauan health officials were concerned that laying charges against the Chinese crew, and trying them would expose Palauans to a high risk of infection.