What is the primary mission of the U.S. Coast Guard?

The primary mission of the U.S. Coast Guard focuses on ensuring maritime safety, security, and environmental protection. This encompasses a broad range of responsibilities, including search and rescue operations, maintaining safe navigation in U.S. waters, enforcing maritime laws, and responding to environmental emergencies, such as oil spills. The Coast Guard plays a vital role in safeguarding the nation's interests and protecting its waters from various threats, including illegal trafficking and potential maritime disasters.

Among the other options, conducting foreign military operations is not a core mission of the Coast Guard, as its primary responsibilities lie in domestic waters and service functions rather than engagement in combat abroad. Supporting ground forces in combat is mainly the role of the Army and Marine Corps, which are specifically trained for land warfare. Furthermore, while the Coast Guard does play a supportive role in logistics, its primary mission does not center around providing logistical support for naval operations but rather centers on civilian maritime implications and law enforcement activities within its purview.