NORFOLK, Va. — The guided-missile destroyer USS Cole (DDG 67) has officially taken over the U.S. southern border operations from USS Gravely (DDG 107).

The warship departed Naval Station Mayport, Florida, on June 5, assuming duties previously held by the Norfolk-based Gravely. Both have been tasked with bolstering maritime security near the U.S. southern border, an area increasingly emphasized in recent national security efforts.

This rare stateside deployment of a Navy warship comes as part of the Department of Defense’s support for presidential executive orders aimed at securing U.S. borders. Rather than being deployed overseas to regions like the Middle East, as is typical, the USS Gravely was assigned to operations much closer to home.

“We want to protect the flanks coming into the

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