[6] In 2016, four destroyers patrolling with the U.S. 6th Fleet based in Naval Station Rota, Spain, including Donald Cook received self-protection upgrades, replacing the aft Phalanx CIWS 20 mm Vulcan cannon with the SeaRAM 11-cell RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile launcher.

[8] On 9 April 2014, U.S. military officials confirmed the deployment of Donald Cook to the Black Sea,[9] shortly after Russia's annexation of Crimea and amid the pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine.

The U.S. Department of Defense's official statement said that the vessel's mission was "to reassure NATO allies and Black Sea partners of America’s commitment to strengthen and improve interoperability, while working towards mutual goals in the region".

[citation needed] On 12 April 2014, an unarmed Russian Su-24 "Fencer" strike aircraft made 12 close-range passes of Donald Cook during a patrol of the western Black Sea.

[11][12] According to an allegation by a Pentagon spokesman, "The aircraft did not respond to multiple queries and warnings from Donald Cook, and the event ended without incident after approximately 90 minutes."

[17] On 11 and 12 April 2016, two Russian Su-24s performed several low-altitude passes on Donald Cook while the ship was conducting exercises with a Polish helicopter in international waters in the Baltic Sea, 70 nautical miles (130 km; 81 mi) off Kaliningrad.

[18][19] In response to the U.S. Secretary of State commenting on the incident and saying that "under the rules of engagement, that could have been a shoot-down",[20] the Russian Federation Council's official Igor Morozov said that the U.S. likewise "ought to know that Donald Cook approached our borders and may already be unable to depart those.

"[citation needed] On 26 February 2019, the ship hosted U.S. diplomats Gordon Sondland, Marie Yovanovitch, Kurt Volker, the EU's Jean Christophe-Belliard, and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, among others.

[22] USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) departed Naval Station Norfolk on 26 March, to replace Donald Cook as one of the forward destroyers located in Rota, Spain.

The armoured gauntlet holding a broken chain represents Colonel Cook's gallantry and indomitable spirit in captivity as a prisoner of war to the Viet Cong.