US Navy's Ticonderoga class cruiser USS Leyte Gulf visits Slovenia.

According to information published by the US DoD on December 5, 2022, the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf (CG 55) arrived in Koper, Slovenia, for a scheduled port visit.
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Ticonderoga class cruiser USS Leyte Gulf. (Picture source: US DoD)

Prior to arriving in Koper, Leyte Gulf participated in the NATO-led vigilance activity Neptune Strike 22.2, a multinational exercise designed to provide tactical training for NATO units.

Leyte Gulf, part of the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group, participated alongside Italian navy destroyer ITS Caio Duilio (D 554), ITS Carabiniere (F 593) and Albanian Coast Guard ships ALS Lissus (P 133) and ALS Butrinti (P 134).

While in Slovenia, the ship’s leaders will meet with national and local political representatives, enhancing the relationship between the two NATO states. Leyte Gulf’s crew will participate in a community relations opportunity in Bodrez, Slovenia, where Sailors will work in tandem with the Scouts Association of Slovenia to beautify the infrastructure of a local campsite.

Leyte Gulf, homeported in Norfolk, Virginia, is operating as part of the USS George H.W. Bush carrier strike group, operating in the U.S. Sixth Fleet area of operation as part of a scheduled deployment.

USS Leyte Gulf (CG-55) is a Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser in the United States Navy. She was named in memory of the World War II Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Pacific.

She is powered by four large gas-turbine engines, and she has a large complement of guided missiles for air defense, attack of surface targets at sea and ashore, and anti-submarine warfare (ASW). In addition, she carries two "Seahawk" LAMPS multi-purpose helicopters, whose primary mission is ASW.