Maritime Piracy

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US navy would go after pirates if they could be tried
12 December 2008
Agence France Presse

The US Navy would go after pirates off Somalia if the international community came up with a process for holding and trying them as criminals, the commander of the US Fifth Fleet said on Friday.

"We would follow the same manner we use down in the Gulf of Mexico in our counter-drug efforts. It's a matter of surveillance, focused surveillance and rapid action," said Vice Admiral Bill Gortney.

But without an internationally recognised legal process for trying pirates, navies have had little choice but to release those captured, Gortney told reporters in Bahrain, which hosts the US Navy's Fifth Fleet.

At least 17 ships are now held by Somali pirates, including an arms-laden Ukrainian cargo vessel and a Saudi-owned super-tanker carrying two million barrels of crude oil.

US and other navies have appeared helpless in the face of a wave of seizures of ships and hostages on the high seas by Somali pirates who have then ransomed them off.

It has not been for lack of authority to act, Gortney acknowledged, noting that the UN Security Council has extended a resolution allowing navies to take action against piracy off Somalia.

"I don't need any authorities for offensive actions against the pirates. I have all I need," he said.

"If I see a piracy event, I can engage, I can pursue, as long as I maintain positive identification on the vessel that is doing the piracy, and I can engage with lethal fire," he said.

"The problem is once I take them, and they are alive, I don't have any place to take them and hold them accountable for their action."

Since the surge in piracy in August, warships have disrupted more than 50 pirate attacks and destroyed their paraphranalia, he said.

"We've thrown over a lot of AK-47s (automatic assault rifles) and RPGs (rocket-propelled grenades) and sunk a lot of skiffs out there," he said.

But in most instances those captured have later been released because there are no authorities in Somalia to take custody of them and put them on trial.

Gortney rejected direct attacks on pirate camps in Somalia as a solution because of the risk of killing innocent civilians or causing other collateral damage.

"I see people trying to look for an easy military solution to a problem that demands a non-kinetic solution," he said.

"If you are going to do kinetic strikes into the pirate camps the positive ID and the collateral damage cannot be overestimated. It's very difficult. They are irregulars, they don't wear uniforms," he said.

Gortney said he sees "some movement" internationally on tackling the adjudication issue internationally, and more countries are sending ships to patrol the sea lanes off Somalia.

In addition, some shipping companies have begun posting security detachments on their vessels and taken other defensive measures, which the admiral said was another key to thwarting piracy.

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FACTBOX-Ships held by Somali pirates

Dec 16 (Reuters) - African and Arab police officers could be assigned to warships in Horn of Africa waters to try to seize Somali pirates and force them to face trial in the region, the United Nations crime-fighting agency said on Tuesday.

Despite the release last week of the Greek freighter, the MV Capt Stephanos, hijacked in September, scores of attacks have left the pirates still holding around a dozen ships in Somalia with nearly 300 hostages still in their hands.

Below are some of the ships believed still to be held:

FAINA: Seized Sept. 24. The ship was carrying 33 T-72 tanks, grenade launchers and ammunition destined for Kenya's Mombasa port. Pirates have demanded $20 million in ransom.

AFRICAN SANDERLING: Seized Oct. 15. The Panama-flagged, Japanese-operated, and Korea-owned bulk carrier has 21 Filipino crew aboard.

STOLT STRENGTH: Seized Nov. 10. The chemical tanker with 23 Filipino crew aboard was hijacked by pirates in the Gulf of Aden. It was carrying 23,818 tonnes of oil products.

THE KARAGOL: Seized Nov. 12. The Turkish ship with 14 crew was hijacked off Yemen. It was transporting more than 4,000 tonnes of chemicals to the port of Bombay.

TIANYU 8: Seized Nov. 13/14. The Chinese fishing boat was reported seized off Kenya. The crew included 15 Chinese, one Taiwanese, one Japanese, three Filipinos and four Vietnamese.

CHEMSTAR VENUS: Seized Nov. 15. The combined chemical and oil tanker was travelling from Dumai, Indonesia to the Ukraine. It had 18 Filipino and five South Korean crew.

SIRIUS STAR: Seized Nov. 15. The Saudi supertanker, the biggest ship ever hijacked, held as much as 2 million barrels of oil. Captured off east Africa, it had 25 crew from Croatia, Britain, the Philippines, Poland and Saudi Arabia.

THE DELIGHT: Seized Nov. 18. The Hong Kong-flagged ship with 25 crew aboard is loaded with 36,000 tonnes of wheat bound for Iran. It was captured off the coast of Yemen.

BISCAGLIA: Seized on Nov. 28. The Biscaglia is a Liberian-flagged chemical tanker with 30 crew on board, 25 Indians, three Britons and two Bangladeshis. NAMES UKNOWN: Seized on Dec. 10. Pirates hijacked two Yemeni fishing vessels with a total of 22 crew members on board in coastal waters in the Gulf of Aden. Five crew reportedly escaped.

Sources: Reuters/International Maritime Bureau Piracy Reporting Centre/Lloyds List/Inquirer.net

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UN gives authority to hunt pirates on land, air
16 December 2008

UNITED NATIONS (AP) - On the same day Somali gunmen seized two more ships, the U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Tuesday to authorize nations to conduct land and air attacks on pirate bases on the coast of the Horn of Africa country.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was on hand to push through the resolution, which is one of President George W. Bush's last major foreign policy initiatives.

Rice said the resolution will have a significant impact, especially since "pirates are adapting to the naval presence in the Gulf of Aden by traveling further" into sea lanes not guarded by warships sent by the U.S. and other countries.

The council authorized nations to use "all necessary measures that are appropriate in Somalia" to stop anyone using Somali territory to plan or carry out piracy in the nearby waters traversed each year by thousands of cargo ships sailing between Asia and the Suez Canal.

That includes the use of Somali airspace, even though the U.S. appeased Indonesia, a council member, by removing direct mention of it, U.S. officials said.

Somalia Foreign Minister Ali Ahmed Jama, whose government asked for the help, said he was "heartened" by the council action. "These acts of piracy are categorically unacceptable and should be put to an end," he said.

The resolution sets up the possibility of increased American military action in Somalia, a chaotic country where a U.S. peacekeeping mission in 1992-93 ended with a humiliating withdrawal of troops after a deadly clash in Mogadishu, as portrayed in the movie "Black Hawk Down."

The commander of the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet expressed doubt last week about the wisdom of staging ground attacks on Somali pirates. Vice Adm. Bill Gortney told reporters it is difficult to identify pirates and said the potential for killing innocent civilians "cannot be overestimated."

Speaking to reporters Rice downplayed the differences between the State Department and Pentagon, saying the U.S. was fully committed to preventing pirates from establishing "a maritime-to-land sanctuary."

"What we do or do not do in cases of hot pursuit we'll have to see, and you'll have to take it case by case," she said. "I would not be here seeking authorization to go ashore if the United States government, perhaps most importantly, the president of the United States, were not behind this resolution."

Spurred by widespread poverty in their homeland, which hasn't had a functioning government for nearly two decades, Somali pirates are evading an international naval flotilla to intercept huge tankers, freighters and other ships to hold for ransom. A tugboat operated by the French oil company Total and a Turkish cargo ship became the latest victims Tuesday.

Pirates have hijacked more than 40 vessels off Somalia's 1,880-mile (3,025-kilometer) coastline this year. Before the latest seizures, maritime officials said 14 vessels remained in pirate hands -- including a Saudi tanker carrying $100 million worth of crude oil and a Ukrainian ship loaded with tanks and other heavy weapons. Also held are more than 250 crew members.

Rice said the resolution will allow the tougher action needed to quell the piracy, which she blamed on Somalia's turmoil.

"Once peace and normalcy have returned to Somalia, we believe that economic development can return to Somalia," she said. "This current response is a good start."

Under the resolution, nations must first get a request for an attack from Somalia's weak U.N.-backed government, which itself would be required to notify U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon before any attack.

"Piracy is a symptom of the state of anarchy which has persisted in that country for over 17 years," Ban told the council. "This lawlessness constitutes a serious threat to regional stability and to international peace and security."

In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman declined to discuss any possible military operations, but acknowledged there are "practical challenges" to combating pirates. He said the U.S. would continue to work with allies in the region and encourage shipping companies to take prudent measures to protect their vessels.

The United Nations also has been urging shipping and insurance companies not to pay ransom for captured ships, saying that encourages more piracy.

He Yafei, China's vice minister for foreign affairs, told the Security Council that China is considering sending warships to the Gulf of Aden, where they would join ships from the U.S., Russia, Denmark, Italy and other countries.

Kenya's military chief, Gen. Jeremiah Kianga, said Tuesday his country will increase patrols along its own coast because the Somali piracy has made business at Kenya's main port more expensive. The Kenyan air force and navy will not enter Somali air space or waters, he said.

Antonio Maria Costa, executive director of the Vienna, Austria-based U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, said Tuesday that it is important for nations to jointly confront pirates.

"Regional cooperation is essential," Costa said. "A few years ago, piracy was a threat to the Straits of Malacca (in Southeast Asia). By working together, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand managed to cut the number of attacks by more than half since 2004."

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Associated Press writers Ahmed Al-Haj in San'A, Yemen, William J. Kole in Vienna, Austria, and Barbara Surk in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.

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German parliament approves anti-pirate force

BERLIN, Dec 19 (Reuters) - German lawmakers agreed on Friday to send up to 1,400 soldiers and a frigate to the Gulf of Aden as part of a European Union operation to fight pirates off the coast of Somalia.

The troops will take part in the first such naval operation organised by the 27-member EU, which aims to provide protection to ships delivering aid to Somalia and to civilian vessels.

A surge in attacks at sea this year in the busy Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean off Somalia has earned gunmen millions of dollars in ransom, pushed up insurance costs and prompted a rush of foreign warships to the area.

Nearly 400 people and 19 ships are being held along the coast, including a Saudi supertanker with 2 million barrels of oil and a Ukrainian cargo ship with 33 tanks.

Germany, the world's top exporter of goods, is dependent on safe seaways, with a large majority of its imports and exports being delivered by sea.

German forces serve in the Horn of Africa under the U.S.-led "Operation Enduring Freedom" and have come to the aid of ships which have been attacked. However, Germany's Defence Ministry says that mission only allowed them to provide emergency assistance, not to directly target pirates.

The German frigate "Karlsruhe", already in the region under the U.S.-led mission, was to be made available for the EU immediately after the parliamentary vote.

Berlin has been seeking to expand its role in overseas missions in the past decade and has forces in countries including Afghanistan, Kosovo and Lebanon. However, many voters remain uneasy about the emergence of a strong army. (Reporting by Kerstin Gehmlich)

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Chinese involvement in anti-piracy effort marks greater global engagement, analysts say
19 December 2008

BEIJING (AP) - China's decision to send warships to battle pirates off Somalia -- taking on a job that involves cooperating with other nations and possible combat -- is a cautious step toward more engagement by Beijing.

Though China has a huge global commercial maritime presence, the People's Liberation Army Navy has primarily focused on defending China's coast and, until now, limited operations abroad to port calls, goodwill visits and exercises with other navies.

"They're on an actual mission, which could potentially involve combat, albeit of low intensity. That's a real difference," said Lyle Goldstein, director of the China Maritime Studies Institute at the U.S. Naval War College. "This is not a dangerous mission -- actually, it's the perfect coming out party for the Chinese navy."

China has never sent military forces overseas other than as part of a U.N.-mandated peacekeeping mission, according to Bonnie Glaser, a China specialist at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. A Foreign Ministry announcement Thursday that China was making preparations to deploy warships followed a unanimous U.N. Security Council vote this week authorizing nations to conduct land and air attacks against pirates.

The Council acted as piracy has taken an increasingly costly toll on international shipping, especially in the Gulf of Aden, one of the world's busiest sea lanes. Spurred by widespread poverty in their homeland, the pirates have made an estimated $30 million hijacking ships for ransom this year, seizing more than 40 vessels off Somalia's 1,880-mile (3,000-kilometer) coastline.

"The fact that the U.N. discussed it and endorsed it is probably important for China. They don't want to be seen as sticking their necks out too far," Glaser said.

The Global Times, a newspaper published by the Communist Party, said the deployment would include two destroyers and a large supply ship. The report said the ships would set out after Christmas for a mission initially lasting three months. Tasks would include patrols and escorting cargo ships.

"It is consistent with the trends we have seen in China's evolving foreign policy of being more proactive and more involved overseas as China's interests have become more global," said Glaser of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "It signals ... a willingness to take on new military missions farther from China's shores than they have in the past."

China's fleet would join ships from the U.S., Denmark, Italy, Russia and other countries in patrolling the Gulf of Aden, which leads to the Suez Canal and is the quickest route from Asia to Europe and the Americas. It is a vital trade artery for China, with as much as 40 percent of all goods and raw materials bound for China -- including oil from the Middle East -- passing through the area, said Kang Shuchun, an expert in Chinese shipping who runs an industry Web site.

So far this year, about 20 percent of the 1,265 Chinese ships passing through the area have come under attack. Seven hijackings have involved Chinese ships or crews, Liu said.

Kang said none of the commercial ships he has seen are armed, meaning crews have few options when attacked. A Chinese cargo ship's crew, aided by the international anti-piracy force, fought off an attempted hijacking this week using Molotov cocktails and water hoses.

"Normally, when they encounter pirates, they will just throw beer bottles or stand around and do nothing," he said.

In addition to the Chinese ship, a Malaysian tugboat was also hijacked this week by Somali pirates who contacted the boat's owners to say its 11 Indonesian crew members are safe but that "the payment of ransom would be discussed later," according to Malaysia's foreign minister Friday.

Ni Lexiong, a military expert at Shanghai University of Political Science and Law, said Beijing has reason to be reluctant about the mission that has significant downsides: the expense of a long deployment, suspicions China is trying to expand its military reach and vengeful pirates if naval forces are forced to fight.

"However, if China does not send the navy ... people will think the government is weak and unable to protect its ships, while internationally, as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, China might appear to be irresponsible," he said.

So far, other countries have responded positively to the likely Chinese involvement in the anti-piracy operation. Lt. Nathan Christensen, a Bahrain-based spokesman for the U.S. Navy, said the 5th Fleet welcomes "all ships that are willing to participate."

Even India, a longtime regional rival who is part of the anti-piracy effort, is supportive of China's assistance in the short term, said C. Uday Bhaskar, a former naval commander and retired director of India's Institute of Defense Studies and Analyses.

"I don't think India would see this as upsetting the strategic balance. I don't see it being a tilt or shift in the current maritime status quo," he said.

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Associated Press writer Gavin Rabinowitz in New Delhi and researchers Xi Yue and Zhao Liang in Beijing contributed to this report.

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Fly the flag if you want protection from pirates: German minister
20 December 2008
Agence France Presse

German-owned ships should fly Germany's flag if they want full protection from pirates off Somalia, Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in an interview to be published Sunday.

But he warned that German cruise ships should not expect much sympathy if they ventured into some of the most dangerous waters in the world.

"If German shipping companies are calling for protection, they should seriously consider sailing their ships under the German flag," he told the Bild am Sonntag weekly.

He added: "To make it quite clear, the waters off the Horn of Africa are not a region for tourist cruises at the moment."

Steinmeier said that the German navy, which is sending a frigate as part of a European force combatting pirates, "cannot protect every ship."

Vessels carrying humanitarian aid for Somalia would have priority, he said.

Germany's tourist federation demanded last week that German cruise ships crossing the Gulf of Aden should each be escorted by a warship.

The German-based Hapag-Lloyd shipping company said Tuesday that one of its cruise ships, on a round-the-world tour, was dropping off its passengers before sailing through the Gulf of Aden as a safety measure, flying them on and picking them up later.

It said the German government had refused to provide an escort to the MS Columbus because it is Bahamas-registered.

Earlier this month, a German frigate fired warning shots at two suspect speed boats heading towards a cruise ship, the MS Astor, off the coast of Yemen.

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Iran sends warship to Somali waters to protect its cargo ships against pirates
20 December 2008

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iranian state radio says Iran has sent a warship to the coast of Somalia to protect its cargo ships against piracy.

The Saturday report says the ship has arrived in Somali waters.

The Iranian ship joins vessels from the U.S., Denmark, Italy, Russia and other countries in patrolling the Gulf of Aden. The gulf leads to the Suez Canal and is the quickest route from Asia to Europe and the Americas.

China also has said it is sending warships to the region.

Pirates have made an estimated $30 million hijacking ships for ransom this year, seizing more than 40 vessels off Somalia's 1,880-mile coastline.

In November, a cargo ship operated by Iran was hijacked off the coast of Somalia, the second since July.

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China ready to use force on Somali pirates
23 December 2008
Agence France Presse

China warned Somali pirates on Tuesday it was prepared to use force when its navy ships arrive in the Gulf of Aden to combat a wave of piracy that has disrupted international shipping.

Two Chinese destroyers and a supply ship set sail on Friday -- the first time in recent history that the nation has deployed ships on a potential combat mission well beyond its territorial waters.

"(If) our naval vessels are ambushed by pirate ships we will resolutely fight back to protect our own safety," Rear Admiral Xiao Xinnian said in a briefing to reporters.

"If the act of piracy is already under way and the pirates are already robbing other civilian vessels, we will suppress their acts, provided we have the capability and conditions to do so."

Xiao, who also serves as navy deputy chief of staff, said the Chinese ships would mainly be charged with protecting the nation's commercial vessels as well as the ships of international organisations such as the United Nations World Food Programme.

About 100 ships -- seven of them Chinese -- have been attacked by Somali pirates since the beginning of the year. At least one Chinese vessel is believed still to be in the hands of the attackers.

The admiral said Chinese war ships would investigate any suspect pirate vessels and approach them and demand that they show their relevant documents and certificates.

The ships would mainly stay in international waters but could enter Somali territory if the situation warranted it, he added.

The UN Security Council last week gave nations a one-year mandate to act inside lawless Somalia to stop the rampant piracy in the Gulf of Aden, part of the Suez Canal route from Europe to Asia.

But some companies are now sailing their vessels around Africa, a longer and thus more expensive route, to avoid the increasingly brazen pirate attacks -- including the seizure of a Saudi supertanker carrying two million barrels of oil.

Huang Xueping, a spokesman for China's ministry of national defence, said China would cooperate with other nations fighting pirates under UN leadership.

"We maintain that the leading and coordinating role of the United Nations should be strengthened and relevant parties should earnestly abide by international law and the concerned UN Security Council resolutions," he said.

Besides being equipped with guided missiles and artillery, the fleet of three Chinese ships will also carry two helicopters and a detail of special forces, according to Xiao.

"With these weapons we will be able to combat piracy effectively," he said.

"This mission will demonstrate the resolve and the capability of the Chinese navy to deal with multiple security threats and diversified military tasks."

Ma Luping, director of China's naval operations, said the flotilla was facing up to 30 organised groups made up of as many as 1,000 pirates.

China would also be willing to provide rescue and aid services to Taiwan-owned ships as long as they registered with the Chinese government, Ma said.

"Currently we do not see any insurmountable obstacles in patrolling these areas," Ma said. "We are confident and capable of fulfilling this mission."

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Yemen to set up anti-piracy centre
24 December 2008
Agence France Presse

The Yemeni government said on Wednesday it is creating a regional anti-piracy centre to battle the growing number of high-seas hijackings by Somali pirates in the area.

The centre will act as a hub for the exchange of information about piracy and for the coordination of multi-national naval forces in international and Somali territorial waters, a Yemeni transport minstry spokesman was quoted as saying by the official Saba news agency.

Yemen has already started work on building the centre which should be completed in about six months, with 10 Red Sea and Gulf of Aden countries taking part, the official said.

Increasingly emboldened pirates using fleets of small, fast boats have carried out more than 100 attacks in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean this year.

Last month, they captured world attention when they hijacked the Saudi-owned super-tanker Sirius Star, carrying two million barrels of crude oil, and demanded a 25-million dollar ransom for the ship and its crew.

It is one of about 17 vessels, including an arms-laden Ukrainian cargo ship, and some 300 sailors currently in pirate hands.

Arab nations on the Red Sea met in Cairo in November and committed to cooperate in the fight against the pirates, but did not announce any concrete measures.

In addition to Yemen, the official said that Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Sudan would be involved in the centre.

"It would be wrong to say that the creation of centre will lead to a regional or international force, because it is simply a technical and coordination centre," he said.

When there are acts of piracy, "it will fall upon the naval forces of the closest country to intervene."

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Somali pirate's body washes ashore with $153,000; relatives search for 4 other dead pirates
11 January 2009

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) - The body of a Somali pirate who drowned just after receiving a huge ransom washed onshore with $153,000 in cash, a resident said Sunday, as the spokesman for another group of pirates promised to soon free a Ukrainian arms ship.

Five pirates drowned Friday when their small boat capsized after they received a reported $3 million ransom for releasing a Saudi oil tanker. Local resident Omar Abdi Hassan said one of the bodies had been found on a beach near the coastal town of Haradhere and relatives were searching for the other four.

"One of them was discovered and they are still looking for the other ones. He had $153,000 in a plastic bag in his pocket," he said Sunday.

The U.S. navy released photos of a parachute dropping a package onto the deck of the Sirius Star, and said the package was likely to be the ransom delivery.

But five of the dozens of pirates who had hijacked the tanker drowned when their small boat capsized as they returned to shore in rough weather. Three other pirates survived but also lost their share of the ransom.

Graeme Gibbon Brooks, managing director of the British company Dryad Maritime Intelligence Service Ltd, said the incident was unlikely to deter attacks.

"The loss or potential loss of the ransom means the pirates will be all the more keen to get the next ransom in," he said. "There are people lining up to be pirates."

The Sirius Star had been held near the Ukrainian cargo ship MV Faina, which was loaded with 33 Soviet-designed battle tanks and crates of small arms. The same day the Sirius Star was released, the family members of the Faina crew appealed for help, saying they were not being kept informed about the negotiations or the state of their loved ones' health.

But a pirate spokesman assured The Associated Press on Sunday that the 20 crew members on the MV Faina were doing well.

"The cargo is still there unharmed and the crew is healthy," Sugule Ali said. "Once the negotiations end in mutual understanding, the ship, its crew and the cargo as well will be released."

There have been several false alarms about the release of the MV Faina since it was seized last September. Ali said the pirates were still negotiating with the ship's owners.

"Nothing has changed from our previous demand of $20 million ransom for the release of the ship, but as negotiations continue we are likely to reduce the amount," he said. He declined to give further details.

American warships have been closely monitoring the Faina amid fears that some of the weapons onboard could be taken onshore and fall into the hands of Islamic insurgents.

The shaky Somali government is battling insurgents the U.S. State Department says are linked to al-Qaida. But the situation is complicated by clan militias and rivalries within the Islamist movement.

The latest clashes among Islamist militias have killed at least 29 people and wounded more than 50 others in central Somalia, witnesses said Sunday. The government now only controls the parliamentary seat of Baidoa and pockets of Mogadishu, the capital.

Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991 and its lawless coastline is a perfect haven for pirates, who attacked 111 ships in the Gulf of Aden and kidnapped 42 of them last year alone. The multimillion dollar ransoms are one of the only ways to make money in the impoverished Horn of Africa nation.

An international flotilla including U.S. warships has been patrolling the area. The flotilla has stopped many attacks, but the area is too vast to keep all ships safe.

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All hands on deck for UN’s anti-piracy group
16 January 2009
Lloyd's List

TWENTY-FOUR countries and five major international organisations have come together at the United Nations to form the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia, charged with co-ordinating anti-piracy actions in the Gulf of Aden, writes David Osler.

The first meeting of the body, which will be known by its acronym CGPCS, took place at the UN’s headquarters in New York on Wednesday, and follows a UN resolution carried last month which authorises “all necessary measures” to deter the crime.

Perhaps the most significant outcome from the shipping industry’s standpoint is the commitment contained in a post-meeting statement to “examine practical options for strengthening the ability of countries willing to detain and prosecute suspected pirates”. It has also pledged to consider other means of addressing piracy, including international judicial mechanisms.

Attendees included Australia, China, Denmark, Djibouti, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Kenya, the Netherlands, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia’s transitional government, South Korea, Spain, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, UK, US and Yemen, as well as the African Union, the European Union, NATO, the UN secretariat and the International Maritime Organization.

The meeting, chaired by US assistant secretary of state Mark Kimmitt, also established teams to organise better operational and information support for counter-piracy operations, as well as stronger powers to arrest, prosecute and detain pirates and to track financial flows related to piracy. There is also to be an industry liaison group, which shipping trade associations hope will provide a mechanism for their input.

A second session has been scheduled for March, in order to review progress and consider the admission of new members. Invitations to sign up have been extended to Belgium, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and the Arab League.

The group noted “the primary role of Somalia itself in rooting out piracy and armed robbery at sea and the importance of assisting Somalia in strengthening its own operational capacity to fight piracy”.

After the meeting, Mr Kimmitt told reporters: “We believe that 2009 will be a year where we can turn this problem around, if we come together as a group of nations working not simply the military aspect but the judicial aspect, the financial aspect, the industry aspect.”

Responding to the initiative, Peter Hinchliffe of the International Chamber of Shipping said: “We welcome any international collaboration, and this is a good example. We certainly endorse doing it under the umbrella of the UN, and we wait to see how it will be taken forward.”

Giles Noakes, security specialist with BIMCO, added that the CGPCS was “a useful initiative, yet to be developed”.

“The fact the UN has taken a security council resolution to the next step of creating a contact group has to be of some use to the shipping industry,” he said.

Separately, a leading Japanese newspaper has reported that Japan may send a ship to join international anti-piracy efforts in the Horn of Africa region as soon as April, after an intense debate over whether this is possible in the light of its post-World War Two pacifist constitution.

A delegation from the Japanese Shipowners’ Association is said to have met defence minister Yasukazu Hamada and urged him to dispatch a vessel to the region as soon as possible.

One option would be for the government to rely on a law used in policing waters near its own coasts to allow a naval vessel with a partly coastguard crew to protect Japanese-owned or -crewed ships elsewhere in the world, the Nikkei business daily said. The government was also considering a new law that would enable it to protect non-Japanese vessels and broaden its use of weapons beyond self-defence, the paper said.

In September last year, Somali pirates released a Japanese ship and its 21-member crew after a $2m ransom was paid — three months after the vessel’s capture.

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Japanese taskforce approves naval mission to Somalia
22 January 2009
Agence France Presse

Japan's ruling coalition Thursday approved plans to send naval ships to pirate-infested waters off Somalia to protect Japanese vessels and nationals, an official said.

The decision by the coalition's anti-piracy task force is expected to pave the way for a Japanese mission off the coast of the lawless African nation some time in the coming months.

The navy would protect Japanese-registered ships and foreign ships with Japanese crew and passengers, or important cargo, said an official with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's junior coalition partner, New Komeito.

The task force said that Japanese coasguards should be on board the navy ships to exercise police duties as the Japanese navy's role was limited strictly to self-defence, he said.

It is up to government to decide what kind of, and how many, ships should be dispatched, said the official in the New Komeito policy planning team.

Earlier reports have said Prime Minister Taro Aso will authorise a plan for a destroyer to head to Somalia.

A number of nations are sending ships to the area to fend off increasingly brazen pirate attacks, which have led some shipping companies to avoid the route via the Suez Canal and, at greater cost, sail around Africa instead.

Japan, officially pacifist since World War II, can legally use its navy only to protect Japanese vessels and citizens.

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US anti-piracy commander: Captured Somali pirates may face trials in the region
23 January 2009

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Captured Somali pirates could soon face trials and serve jail sentences outside their homeland under a pact being negotiated between American officials and regional allies, the head of a new U.S. anti-piracy task force said Friday.

The lack of an international framework to bring pirates to justice is among the many frustrations for naval forces struggling to curb rising attacks on merchant vessels off lawless Somalia, where pirates launched more than 100 assaults on ships last year and took away millions of dollars in ransom.

Rear Adm. Terence McKnight told The Associated Press an accord could be reached within weeks to clear the way for piracy trials and imprisonment in countries "in the region." He declined, however, to name the nations possibly willing to hold the trials.

"We're working with a couple of countries that have helped ... out before," McKnight said in a telephone interview from the USS San Antonio, which began anti-piracy patrols last week along with another U.S. warship.

In November, a Kenyan court gave seven-year prison sentences to each of 10 Somali pirates captured by the U.S. Navy after hijacking an Indian-based merchant ship. Last week, eight suspected pirates detained by a British warship also went before a Kenyan court in Mombasa.

India has handed over 11 suspected Somali pirates to Yemen. France and Denmark are among European nations that appear willing to hold their own piracy trials -- which are impossible in Somalia. The Horn of Africa country has been without a functioning government for nearly two decades.

The U.S. talks on the possible pirate trials are ongoing, and it was unclear whether the legal process could pose conflicts with other nations that may chose to hold their own trials for suspected pirates.

Pirates last year staged a series of increasingly bold ambushes with some startling successes, including commandeering a Saudi oil tanker and a Ukrainian cargo ship carrying more than 30 battle tanks. The tanker was released earlier this month after the payment of a reported $3 million ransom.

Naval forces from the around the world have responded with warships and surveillance vessels throughout the Gulf of Aden and nearby waters that mark one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. An estimated 20,000 merchant ships use the route the links Asian ports to the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal.

More than a dozen nations -- including Britain, France, China and Russia -- have deployed ships to the region to combat pirates. The warships coordinate with the new U.S. Navy task force, said McKnight, but are not directly under his command.

"The coalition involvement has been huge," he said, noting that pirate attacks have fallen sharply since early January.

Rough seas in recent weeks could force the small pirate ships to remain ashore. But McKnight said new tactics are being used to foil attacks, including asking captains to steam at full speed through the main pirate zone and avoid nighttime travel.

Also, a tighter shipping corridor has been established through the Gulf of Aden to allow naval ships to patrol the edges.

"It's like herding cattle," said McKnight.

The U.S. task force includes about 1,000 sailors and 80 Marines. The ships carry an Navy HH-60 helicopter squadron and special vessels for boarding teams that include Marine scout snipers.

In December, Iran joined the international flotilla off Somalia after sending a warship to help protect Iranian merchant vessels. McKnight did not reject the idea of possible naval cooperation between the two foes.

"We'll work to coordinate ... with all professional navies operating in the area," he said. "Piracy is an international problem that requires an international solution That means we all need to work together to ensure the free flow of commerce in the world's waterways."

[nazrey]

Straits of Malacca seeing drop in piracy attacks
By Kang Siew LiPublished: 2009/01/19

Piracy attacks in the Straits of Malacca, one of the world's busiest waterways, fell for the fourth straight year in 2008.

The decline was thanks to increased vigilance and patrols by the three littoral states as well as precautionary measures taken on board ships.

In its Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships annual report released last Friday, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) listed two attacks last year, against seven in 2007.

"With the world economy in its present uncertain condition, there is a possibility of piracy increasing. Navies and coast guards must, therefore, continue to maintain their efforts against pirates," IMB director Captain Pottengal Mukundan said.

Last year's 293 reported piracy attacks worldwide was the highest since the 329 attacks in 2004.

There were 263 attacks in 2007 and 239 in 2006.

Mukundan attributed last year's increase to the unprecedented number of attacks in the Gulf of Aden.

"In terms of vessel hijackings and crew taken hostage, the 2008 statistics surpassed all figures recorded by the IMC's Piracy Reporting Centre (PRC) in Kuala Lumpur since it began its worldwide reporting function in 1991.

"This was due primarily to the situation in Somalia and the Gulf of Aden, with a total of 42 vessels hijacked and 815 crew members taken hostage," he said.

As at December 31 2008, Somali pirates held 13 vessels for ransom and 242 crew members hostage.

The report also stated that 111 incidents were reported along the east coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden last year, up nearly 200 per cent from 2007. The incidents peaked in September with 19 vessel attacks.

Mukundan said the increased ability of Somali pirates to venture farther out to sea was a contributing factor. That coupled with the inability of the Somali government to respond encouraged the attacks.

The Gulf of Aden was ranked as the world's top piracy hot spot last year, with 92 attacks compared with 13 in 2007.

MISC Bhd, the world's biggest owner of liquefied natural gas tankers, saw two of its vessels hijacked in the Gulf of Aden in August.

Nigeria ranked second, with 40 reported incidents, including 27 vessels boarded, five hijackings and 39 crew members kidnapped.

Indonesia was number three, with 28 incidents reported last year compared with 43 in 2007.

"Indonesia should be applauded for their sustained efforts in curbing piracy and armed robbery in its waters," Mukundan said.

"Compared with 2003, when 121 attacks were reported, there has been a continued year-on-year decline in Indonesia."

Attacks worldwide were more violent over the past year, with 11 crew members killed and 21 missing and presumed dead, the global seafarers' watchdog said.

The number of incidents in which guns were used nearly doubled, at 139 last year from 72 in 2007.

http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_New...b18-2/Article/

[nazrey]

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[hkskyline]

Piracy jumps on wave of attacks off Somalia-IMB

LONDON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Acts of piracy jumped 11 percent in 2008 driven by an unprecedented wave of attacks by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said on Friday.

Hijackings and hostage taking on the world's oceans rose to record levels mainly driven by attacks on merchant shipping off Somalia which rose two fold, the London-based IMB said in its annual report.

It said attacks rose to 293 worldwide last year with 32 mariners wounded, 11 killed and 21 missing, presumed dead.

IMB Director Pottengal Mukundan said 42 ships were hijacked and 815 crew taken hostage in waters off Somalia and the Gulf of Aden in 2008.

As of Dec. 31 he said Somali pirates were holding 13 ships for ransom and 242 crew hostage.

Pirates pose a growing threat to shipping off the African coast, forcing insurance prices to rise and bringing naval vessels form an unprecedented 14 countries including China, India and Russia to protect shipping.

Mukundan said he was encouraged by efforts to tackle piracy.

"International navies are the only ones capable of an effective response against piracy in the region and can help to secure the safety and security of this major maritime trade route," he said.

The IMB said attacks peaked off Somalia in September with 19 incidents. In October and November there were 15 and 16 ships attacked respectively, it said.

Nigeria ranked second in the world for attacks with 40 reported incidents, including 27 vessels boarded, five hijackings and 39 crew members kidnapped.

The IMB also said it was aware of approximately 100 further unconfirmed incidents that have occurred in Nigeria.

"Under-reporting from vessels involved in incidents in the Nigerian waters remains a great concern," the IMB said.

Attacks in Indonesia fell. "Compared to 2003 when 121 attacks were reported, there has been a continued year-on-year decline with 28 incidents reported in 2008, the majority of which were opportunistic, low-level attacks," the IMB said.

[hkskyline]

Nine countries sign deal to fight Somali piracy
29 January 2009
Agence France Presse

Nine countries from the region most affected by Somali piracy on Thursday signed a deal enhancing cooperation in the fight against piracy in the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden.

A code of conduct was signed by eight coastal nations as well as Ethiopia during a special meeting convened in Djibouti under the auspices of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

"This Djibouti code of conduct is the first regional agreement between Arab and African countries against acts of piracy against ships in the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea and the western Indian Ocean," Koji Sekimizu, head of the IMO's maritime safety division, told an AFP reporter at the meeting.

The document provides for the creation of three information centres in Mombasa, Dar es Salaam and Sanaa and a training centre for anti-piracy units in Djibouti.

"We now have an efficient mechanism to fight against piracy. The text of the code has been accepted by concensus. The IMO is ready to help the member states to implement this agreement," Sekimizu added.

The nine signatories are Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, the Maldives, the Seychelles, Somalia, Tanzania and Yemen.

The code of conduct says coastal states should make the necessary changes in their legislations to facilitate the arrest and prosecution of piracy suspects.

The fate of Somali pirates arrested by warships patrolling the area -- most of which were dispatched by Western navies -- has been a sensitive issue.

Some observers describe the drive by the United Nations and other key players to legalise the transfer of Somali pirates by foreign navies to a court in a coastal country as a "rendition programme with a UN stamp".

The meeting however failed to reach an agreement on allowing foreign navies to engage in hot pursuit in Somali territorial waters.

"It is a very serious issue under international law and sovereignty. There is a principle that each ship pursuing a pirate has to ask for the permission of the concerned state to enter its waters. We have decided to stay on this principle," Sekimizu explained.

Chantal Poirier, France's special ambassador on anti-piracy issues, said during the meeting's closing session she had hoped "for a more binding agreement".

Around 140 foreign vessels were attacked by Somali pirates in 2008, threatening to disrupt world trade and making Somalia's waters the world's most dangerous.

The growing scourge spurred Western powers into dispatching several warships to the region but pirates have proved to be undeterred and continued their attacks.

A German gas tanker was seized by pirates in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday despite being under navy escort.

[hkskyline]

Japan to send anti-piracy vessels to Somalia: PM
31 January 2009
Agence France Presse

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso said Saturday that Japan would send Navy vessels to the waters off Somalia, joining a coalition of countries fighting piracy in the area.

"In addition to our maritime Self-Defense Force's replenishment support activities in the Indian Ocean, Japan will dispatch Self-Defense Force vessels off Somalia as a countermeasure against piracy," he told the World Economic Forum here.

The Japanese government officially put the pacifist nation's navy on standby this week. Aso is expected to give the final order for the mission within the next month.

The conservative prime minister wants Japan to play a greater role in global security. US, European and Chinese vessels have all been dispatched to the waters off Somalia, where pirates attacked more than 100 ships last year.

China's mission marks the first time in recent history that the country has deployed ships for possible combat beyond its territorial waters.

Japan and China have often jostled for influence, although they have been working since 2006 to repair their historically tense relationship.

[hkskyline]

US Navy seizes 9 suspected pirates in Gulf of Aden after vessel reports being fired upon
12 February 2009

ABOARD THE USNS LEWIS AND CLARK (AP) - The U.S. Navy apprehended suspected pirates Thursday for a second consecutive day in the Gulf of Aden, a treacherous waterway between Somalia and Yemen where international forces have been battling pirates preying on commercial vessels.

The high-seas action came as a Ukrainian cargo ship laden with tanks and heavy weapons, which Somali pirates released last week after holding it for more than four months, docked at a Kenyan port.

The Navy said it responded Thursday to a distress signal from the Indian-flagged vessel Premdivya which said it was fired upon by men in a skiff who were trying to board their vessel.

In a statement from the 5th Fleet's Bahrain headquarters, the Navy said a helicopter from the USS Vella Gulf fired two warning shots at the suspected pirates to stop them fleeing. U.S. forces searched the skiff and found weapons including rocket-propelled grenades, then took nine suspected pirates aboard the American ship.

Officials were gathering evidence on the incident and may hand the suspects to Kenyan authorities for prosecution, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. The United States agreed last month to hand pirate suspects to the east African nation.

On Wednesday, the same American ship detained seven other suspected pirates -- the Navy's first arrests since it established an anti-piracy task force this year.

Those suspects, armed with AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades, had tried to board the Marshall Islands-flagged vessel Polaris using a ladder from their skiff.

The seven were transferred via helicopter to the USNS Lewis and Clark on Thursday. They will eventually be handed to Kenya, according to Lt. Nathan Christensen, a spokesman for the 5th Fleet.

Associated Press Television News footage showed some of the men, handcuffed and wearing leg shackles and white jumpsuits, being escorted from helicopters onto the ship.

They were given a meal, a blanket, a towel and a bar of soap, but they were not allowed to talk to each other. U.S. forces assisted by a translator were trying to get information from the men, such as their ages and nationalities.

The men were then taken to a holding area surrounded by razor wire where they were watched by U.S. forces.

Pirates, mostly from lawless Somalia, have become an increasing problem in the region. Last year, pirates seeking multimillion-dollar ransoms attacked 111 ships in the Gulf of Aden and seized 42 of them, including the Ukrainian ship, the MV Faina.

That vessel docked at Mombasa on Thursday. The ship's captain had died of a suspected heart attack during the kidnapping.

"It is very difficult to express our feelings because the voyage is too hard for everybody," the acting captain, Viktor Nikolsky, said in broken English during brief comments to journalists at the docks.

The 20 Russian and Ukrainian crew members were then whisked away for medical checks, and were expected to be flown back to Ukraine on Saturday.

The Ukrainian ship's capture sparked a diplomatic spat; while Kenya had said the weapons belonged to Nairobi, a Kenyan maritime official and several foreign diplomats said the weapons were destined for southern Sudan.

The allegations embarrassed Kenya, which had helped broker a peace deal between northern Sudan's government and the oil-rich south in 2005, ending a 21-year civil war.

Officials repeated Thursday that the tanks had been bound for Kenya.

"We have nothing to hide," Kenyan government spokesman Alfred Mutua told the banks of TV cameras assembled at the docks.

MV Faina's ordeal began in September, when scores of heavily armed Somali pirates swarmed onboard as it carried 33 Soviet-designed tanks and crates of small arms headed to Kenya. Foreign governments had feared the Faina's weapons might fall into the hands of Somali insurgents who the U.S. State Department says are linked to al-Qaida.

In an effort to stop the pirates and protect commercial shipping, warships from a number of countries including the United States, India, Britain, China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and South Korea have sent ships to the area.

Somalia has not had a functioning government since warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991, then turning on each other and reducing the Horn of Africa nation to anarchy and chaos.

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Associated Press reporters Barbara Surk in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Pauline Jelinek in Washington, and Katharine Houreld in Mombasa, Kenya contributed to this report.

[Mr_Dru]

Somali 'pirates' face Dutch court
(BBC, Wednesday, 11 February 2009)

Five suspected Somali pirates are to appear in a Netherlands court over an alleged foiled attack on a ship in the Gulf of Aden, say Dutch prosecutors.
They were extradited after being arrested by the Danish Navy following a 2 January attempt to board a Dutch Antilles-registered cargo freighter.

The Samanyulo's crew kept the gang at bay with signal flares until a naval frigate came to sink the pirates' boat. The accused risk up to nine years in jail if found guilty. The alleged leader of the group could face a 12-year sentence if convicted.

A Rotterdam magistrate will decide on Wednesday whether to remand them in custody for more two weeks, the Dutch Public Prosecution Office said. Prosecution spokesman Wim de Bruin told AFP news agency on Tuesday the accused had been flown to the Netherlands on a military plane from the Gulf state of Bahrain.

One of the oldest Dutch law 'Piracy' suddenly becomes usefull in modern days.