UNCLASSIFIED// 
ROUTINE 
R 081730Z MAR 22 MID60010002072965S 
FM CNO WASHINGTON DC 
TO NAVADMIN 
INFO SECNAV WASHINGTON DC 
ZEN/CNO WASHINGTON DC 
BT 
UNCLASSIFIED 
R 081730Z MAR 22 
 
NAVADMIN 058/22 
 
MSGID/NAVADMIN/CNO WASHINGTON DC/N3N5/FEB// 
 
SUBJ/UPDATE TO NAVY-WIDE OPTASK VISUAL INFORMATION// 
 
REF/A/GENADMIN/NAVY-WIDE OPTASK VISUAL INFORMATION/COMUSFLTFORCOM/ 
011001ZOCT19// 
REF/B/DOC/INCSEA AGREEMENT/USN/25MAY72// 
REF/C/DOC/OPNAVINST/05APR21// 
 
NARR/REF A IS THE NAVY-WIDE OPTASK VISUAL INFORMATION. 
REF B IS THE 1972 AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND 
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLIC ON THE PREVENTION OF 
INCIDENTS ON AND OVER THE WATERS OUTSIDE THE LIMITS OF THE TERRITORIAL SEA. 
REF C IS THE CHIEF OF NAVAL OPERATIONS (CNO) INCSEA AGREEMENT IMPLEMENTATION 
GUIDANCE FOR THE OPNAV STAFF AND NAVAL COMPONENT COMMANDS.// 
 
POC/LCDR ROBERT MAUL/703-545-8181/EMAIL: robert.w.maul.mil@us.navy.mil// 
 
RMKS/1. This NAVADMIN updates reference (a) to incorporate INCSEA reporting 
guidance. 
 
2. This update addresses underreporting of incidents between United States 
and Russia that occur outside the limits of territorial seas, reporting that 
is required per the Incident at Sea (INCSEA) agreement between our two 
nations (OPNAVINST 5711.96D). Underreporting results in an incomplete picture 
that constrains our position at the annual INCSEA Consultations; designed to 
minimize the risk of miscalculation. 
 
3. OPNAVINST 5711.96D directs that INCSEA violations are to be reported 
within 15 days of occurrence. 
 
4. Action for Navy Component Commands (NCC).  To ensure that interactions 
between U.S. and Russian Federation Forces are evaluated under both Visual 
Information criteria and INCSEA Agreement criteria, the following guidance 
will be added to Reference (a), paragraph E "Interactions with Russian Ships 
and Aircraft": 
a.  Per OPNAVINST 5711.96D, all interactions between U.S. and Russian Ships 
and Aircraft that generate a VI report shall be evaluated for INCSEA 
violations by Navy Component Commands (NCC).  The NCC shall include in their 
VI report their assessment of whether or not an associated INCSEA violation 
occurred, with details provided separately per OPNAVINST 5711.96D if it 
indeed met INCSEA violation criteria. 
b.  INCSEA incident criteria is independent of VI Criteria.  An interaction 
determined to be safe and professional under VI guidance may still meet 
INCSEA reporting criteria, driving the need to evaluate each event 
independently against the criteria in references (a), (b) and (c).  Although 
less common, underreporting may also exist for INCSEA violations that do not 
trip a VI report, e.g. a simulated attack outside visual range. 
c.  When in doubt, report the event as an INCSEA violation for further 
evaluation by OPNAV ahead of annual INCSEA consultations, facilitating the 
larger efforts of minimizing miscalculations while also maintaining 
information balance. 
 
5. For questions, please contact LCDR Robert Maul, email: 
robert.maul@navy.smil.mil 
 
6. Released by VADM W. R. Merz, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for 
Operations, Plans, and Strategy, OPNAV N3/N5.// 
 
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