The Threat of Modern Piracy- A Merged Thread

[Blackadder1916]

It appears that someone has finally stepped up for the food ship escort task and VILLE DE QUEBEC could be re-joining SNMG-1 (still in the Med?) by early next month.


Dutch sending escort ship to Somali coast

UPI Published: Oct. 7, 2008 at 10:56

MOGADISHU, Somalia, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- The Dutch government said Tuesday it is sending another ship to the coast of Somalia, where pirates have seized more than two dozen vessels this year.

The frigate De Ruyter is being dispatched to protect U.N. food transports from pirates, Radio Netherlands reported. It is expected to arrive off the Somali coast at the end of the month.

From April to June, another Dutch frigate escorted shipments of food intended for more than 1 million refugees in Somalia, the broadcaster said.

Meanwhile, negotiations continue over the Ukrainian ship seized Sept. 25 by Somali pirates, Voice of America reported. U.S. warships are in the area to prevent the unloading of the ship's cargo of tanks and other heavy arms.

A Russian missile frigate is en route to join the blockade and the European Union has voted to take a military action.

The Somali government, facing infighting and insurgency, has sought international assistance in to combat piracy in its waters, VOA said.

 

[The Bread Guy]

UN now paying attention (asking others to do more) - shared in accordance with the "fair dealing" provisions, Section 29, of the Copyright Act.

Security Council and Ban call for naval and air action against Somali pirates
UN News Centre, 7 Oct 08
Article link

The Security Council and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called today for more international air and naval forces off the pirate-ridden coast of Somalia to ensure that United Nations food aid gets through to more than 3 million people threatened with starvation.

In a resolution adopted unanimously, the Council called on States with naval vessels and military aircraft operating off the Somali coast to use “the necessary means” against acts of piracy, while Mr. Ban warned that more Somalis will die unless countries provide the forces needed to ensure that the UN World Food Programme (WFP) can deliver its aid.

“In Somalia, 3 million people are in danger of starving,” Mr. Ban said in introductory remarks to a news conference at UN Headquarters in New York. “Nearly 90 per cent of the food that feeds them arrives from the sea aboard WFP ships.

“As you know, pirates are terrorizing Somalia’s coastal waters,” he said, noting that the Dutch, French, Danish and Canadian navies have been escorting WFP ships safely into the ports, but that Canada’s tour of duty ends on 23 October.

“As yet, no nation has volunteered to take Canada’s place,” Mr. Ban added. “Without escorts, those ships will not arrive. Without that aid, more people will die.”

The piracy crisis took on added significance last month when a Ukrainian cargo ship laden with tanks, rocket-propelled grenades and ammunition was seized and Mr. Ban said he would discuss the matter with European Union (EU) officials when he visits Geneva later this month.

“I urge them [the EU and other nations] to bear in mind the October 23 deadline as they consider longer-term solutions to the challenge of piracy on the Horn of Africa,” he added.

In its resolution the Council cited humanitarian reports that as many as 3.5 million Somalis will depend on food aid by the end of the year and WFP’s maritime contractors will not deliver that aid without naval warship escorts ....

More on link

 

[CBH99]

Am I missing something here??

Pirates in open-top, leaky speedboats...armed with assault rifles and RPG's...are hijacking large commercial vessels off the coast of Somalia, while holding the crews hostages for ransom.

Is there some other factor that complicates the solution to this problem??  If I recall, only about a month ago the USN engaged and sunk a bunch of these little pirate boats while they were docked...effectively eliminating the problem in that particular region for a while.  This seems like a pretty cost-effective, prudent solution to the problem.

Take away the pirate's boats, and you take away their means of engaging and boarding these commercial vessels.  Or, am I missing something?

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

And how do you seperate these little boats from commercial interest. Do you realize how many of these small craft are in that area of the world? Do you advocate we destroy or take them all out?

 

[CBH99]

Not at all.  Obviously, detroying ALL of those little boats would be an extreme....most likely disrupting the legitimate business does go on, such as fishing. 

I guess I should clarify my question with another:  Once a boat has been confirmed a pirate boat, what is done?  Is it engaged when the time becomes safe?  Or, are coalition vessels there mostly to 'deter' attacks just by a presence - without a clear mandate to engage?

Any navy types know what international law pertains to this?  From my understanding, once a pirate stops engaging a commercial vessel - they cease to be a pirate (as per definition).  Does this present any significant challenge to coalition naval forces? 

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

As was previously stated it depends on the ROE authorized at the time. VDQ will be operating under those ROEs, this day and age we would not deploy a ship without any sort of ROE. If the Rules of Engagement state we don't engage then we don't we are bound by those rules unless certain situations present themselves.

 

[The Bread Guy]

One analysis says it may be time for shipping companies to crank up their own security.....

....  Naval rules of engagement aside, the limitations of the multinational naval coalition's ability to provide security for the sheer numbers of an estimated 20,000 commercial ships transiting the Gulf of Aden has been acknowledged publicly.  Just over two weeks ago US Vice Admiral Bill Gortney, the Combined Maritime Forces Commander stated that "the coalition does not have the resources to provide 24-hour protection for the vast number of merchant vessels in the region."  While this admission was not surprising in itself, his proposed solution for dealing with the threat of piracy has been. Noting that public security efforts cannot guarantee safety in the region, he told media sources that "the shipping companies must take measures to defend their vessels and their crews," and went on to urge commercial shipping firms to employ security teams to deal with the threat of piracy.  British Commodore Keith Winstanley, deputy commander of the Combined Maritime Forces in the region, later publicly underscored these remarks, stating that these security measures "would include shippers considering hiring private armed security escorts."  In a move seemingly timed to take advantage of these recent public pronouncements - as well as the reported tenfold increase in insurance rates for ships transiting the Gulf of Aden - one London based private security company has teamed up with a brokerage firm to offer private security services designed to lower insurance rates in the Gulf.  Mike Maloney, an insurance broker involved in the deal, told ISN Security Watch that their private security partner's ability to place an armed security team on board a client's vessel had convinced a number of insurance underwriters to offer preferred rates to ship owners that took advantage of these private security teams.  Other private security companies have also taken renewed interest in the possibilities of using security teams to provide anti-piracy services off of the coast of Somalia.  ....

 

[CougarKing]

In this image released by U.S. Navy, the crew of the Ukrainian MV Faina stand on the deck following a U.S. Navy request to check on their health and welfare, off Somalia's coast Sunday Oct. 5, 2008. The ship is carrying 33 battle tanks, military weapons and 21 Ukrainian and Latvian and Russian hostages. One Russian has reportedly died, apparently of illness, during the 11-day standoff. The pirates are demanding US$20 million ransom, and say they will not lower the price.
(AP Photo/U.S. Navy, Jason R. Zalasky, HO)

 

[PanaEng]

One analysis says it may be time for shipping companies to crank up their own security.....

I've been thinking that for a while and it will get momentum with preferential insurance rates for those companies that use/hire their own security; If only for sensitive cargo as the Faina.
It is inevitable, I think, with the current state in those waters.

 

[The Bread Guy]

NATO now doing its part....

NATO Maritime Group to Combat Pirates off Somalia
Jim Garamone, American Forces Press Service, 9 Oct 08
Article link

NATO will send its Standing Naval Maritime Group to the waters off Somalia, a spokesman for the alliance said today.

James Appathurai told reporters at a news conference that the decision came out of the defense ministerial conference under way here. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is meeting with his NATO counterparts.

Piracy off Somalia’s coast has become an increasing concern, highlighted by the recent taking of the Ukrainian cargo vessel Faina. The ship is carrying tanks and other military supplies. The pirates, who operate from small boats launched from the beach, also have endangered food shipments to the country. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said 3 million Somalis are in danger of not receiving the supplies they need via the World Food Program.

“The United Nations asked for NATO’s help to address this problem,” Appathurai said. “Today, the ministers agreed that NATO should play a role. NATO will have its Standing Naval Maritime Group, which is composed of seven ships, in the region within two weeks.”

The NATO force will ensure World Food Program ships have the escort they need to deliver their essential food supplies and patrol the waters around Somalia to help to stop acts of piracy.

Well in excess of 40 percent of Somalis are dependent on food aid delivered by World Food Program ships, Appathurai said, and the increased danger of piracy requires that the aid ships have escorts. A Canadian warship is performing that mission now.

The NATO ships will work with all allies who have ships in the area now, the NATO spokesman said. The U.S. Navy has ships in the region.

“There are still important details to work out, but the bottom line is there will soon be NATO military vessels off the coast of Somalia deterring piracy and escorting food shipments,” Appathurai said. “That is good news for the Somalis, and good news for international shipping.”

 

[Blackadder1916]

Somali pirates target tanker, UN food ship in new attacks

AFP October 11, 2008

NAIROBI (AFP) — Pirates seized a tanker and attacked a UN food ship that escaped, officials said Saturday, the latest in a series of incidents off Somalia which have sparked worldwide concern.

Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's (IMB) Piracy Reporting Centre in Kuala Lumpur, told AFP that pirates boarded a Greek chemical tanker Friday at 1330 GMT.

"Pirates attacked the ship flying a Panama flag using boats," he said, adding the tanker was hijacked in the notorious Gulf of Aden.

Greece's merchant marine ministry however denied the tanker was Greek, saying it had been informed that a Panamanian-flagged ship, carrying 17 Georgians and three Spaniards, had been boarded by pirates.

"We cannot completely rule out Greek involvement in the company that owns the ship, but for us it is not the case of a Greek vessel," the ministry's spokesman said.

On Thursday, pirates tried to board a World Food Programme (WFP) chartered freighter, MV Al Salaam, after it had offloaded food aid in the Somali capital Mogadishu, but it escaped, the agency said.

"The ship outran the attackers (and) was then escorted by the Canadian frigate -- Ville de Quebec -- until it arrived in Mombasa on Friday," WFP spokesman Peter Smerdon told AFP in Nairobi.

Such attacks have surged even with US warships and navies from other nations currently shadowing hijacked Ukrainian ship, MV Faina -- laden with 33 tanks and other arms -- anchored off the Somali fishing village of Hobyo, to prevent the pirates from offloading the cargo.

The pirates are demanding a 20-million-dollar (15-million-euro) ransom to release Faina and its 21 crew languishing in captivity since September 25.

Somali authorities, currently fighting Islamist rebels in mainly Mogadishu, have conceded failure to fight pirates, and urged the international community to help.

On Thursday, NATO defence ministers agreed to send seven war ships this month to help combat piracy off Somalia.

The alliance said the vessels, including several frigates, would help escort WFP food shipments and patrol the largely-lawless waters off Somalia.

WFP ships carry 30,000-35,000 tonnes of aid into Somalia each month. Its vessels are currently under Canadian escort, but that service is due to come to an end on October 20 and the operation could halt if no escort is available.

Aid agencies say at least at least 2.6 million people in Somalia are facing acute shortages and warn that the figure could climb to 3.2 million by year-end.

According to the IMB, 69 ships have been attacked off Somalia since January, 27 were hijacked and 11 are still being held for ransom. Pirates are holding more than 200 crew members from various nationalities.

Choong said IMB had issued a fresh warning to ships to maintain strict anti-piracy watch since the waters off Somalia were too wide to secure.

"As long as there is no firm deterrent, pirates will continue to attack ships. But the military cannot be everywhere since this is a wide area," he added.

The Gulf of Aden is one of the world's busiest maritime routes and under increasing surveillance from foreign warships, leading pirates to venture further out to catch their prey.

The pirates operate high-powered speedboats -- often from a 'mothership' sailing in the waters -- and are heavily armed, sometimes holding ships seized off Somalia's coast for weeks.

 

[tomahawk6]

The Iranian ship with its mysterious cargo has been released by the pirates. I hope the Navy boards that vessel to determine the exact nature of the cargo.

 

[dapaterson]

Simple question:  If so many shipowners choose to register their ships in places like Liberia, and fly those flags of convenience, why should we intervene at all?  Let NATO warships escort and assist cargo ships registered within NATO.  If, for example, Paul Martin wants to run a company called, say, Canada Steamship Lines, with all the vessels flying foreign flags, I can see no compelling reason for Canada, not the beneficiary of any registration fees etc, to provide military support.

Hmmm...

 

[CougarKing]

Simple question:  If so many shipowners choose to register their ships in places like Liberia, and fly those flags of convenience, why should we intervene at all?  Let NATO warships escort and assist cargo ships registered within NATO.  If, for example, Paul Martin wants to run a company called, say, Canada Steamship Lines, with all the vessels flying foreign flags, I can see no compelling reason for Canada, not the beneficiary of any registration fees etc, to provide military support.

Hmmm...

1.)the companies/owners of those ships may be within NATO/EU member countries, or even within countries just friendly to Canada, regardless of their registry.
2.)the some of the crewmen may be citizens of NATO/EU member countries or just countries friendly to Canada.
3.) Piracy is EVERYONE's problem and should be eliminated because it is a threat to seaborne commerce- isn't there a Law of the Sea/Maritime Law or something that compels warships, coast guard vessels and police vessels, etc., to come to the aid of vessels in distress, regardless of nationality? I think that pirate attacks count among those distress situations.

Haven't you heard of the General Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS)?

Isn't there a function on the Digital Selective Calling (DSC) display console of large merchant vessels that one can push to indicate pirate attack?

 

[Blackadder1916]

(British) Navy to tackle Gulf pirates
Another tanker hijacked as Britain takes lead role in EU mission to keep shipping lanes open for trade

Gaby Hinsliff, political editor The Observer, Sunday October 12 2008

Britain is to send a warship to combat piracy off the East African coast amid concerns that a spate of violent attacks on shipping could drive up oil prices.

The increasingly treacherous waters off the Horn of Africa are regularly used by Shell Oil, as well as by aid agencies shipping food. John Hutton, the new Defence Secretary, has agreed to deploy the frigate Northumberland which will provide an operational headquarters for a European Union mission to pursue and disrupt piracy in the region.

Yesterday the International Maritime Bureau reported that another tanker had been hijacked in the Gulf of Aden near Somalia. The Greek chemical tanker, with 20 crew on board, is thought to have been taken late on Friday night. Eleven ships and around 200 crew in total are now being held captive. Pirates holding another tanker laden with a cargo of heavy weapons off the Somali coast have threatened to blow it up by tomorrow if their ransom demands are not met.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said there were concerns that oil tankers would begin avoiding the region and taking longer routes around Africa, driving up oil prices. 'The fear is that it adds so many more miles that the price of petrol rises. Potentially it has a direct impact on the wider world.'

The rules of engagement for what would be a joint EU mission, with Britain appealing to other EU nations to provide warships and helicopter support, have yet to be decided. But it marks an escalation from Britain's current position that ships already patrolling waters off the Horn of Africa will intervene if they come across attacks on shipping.

The problem was discussed last week at a meeting of defence secretaries in Budapest and plans are expected to be finalised in the next 10 days. Britain is offering to deploy Northumberland, a Type 23 frigate, the mainstay of the modern surface fleet, and a rear admiral to command the mission for four months, with the total deployment expected to last a year.

There have been more than 50 attacks on shipping in the region in the past year, with the Somali government unable to enforce its writ either on land or at sea. Extortion and people smuggling have replaced fishing as a coastal industry and while initially hostages were relatively well treated, violence has escalated recently with threats to behead Europeans caught at sea. Insurance costs for merchant shipping in the region have spiralled, threatening a knock-on effect on prices for goods.

Last week the senior Royal Navy commander in the Gulf, Commodore Keith Winstanley, suggested that civilian shipping should use armed private security personnel to secure safe passage through the area. Merchant shipping has not been significantly armed since the Second World War, but Winstanley argued that security companies working in Iraq or Afghanistan could have a role to play

 

[Slim]

Isn't there a function on the Digital Selective Calling (DSC) display console of large merchant vessels that one can push to indicate pirate attack?

I did the DSC course 2 years ago now and seem to remember that it is primarily a distress call. Not sure if it has a MARSEC component to it or not...but I don't seem to remmber there being one.

Cheers

Slim

 

[Blackadder1916]

3.) Piracy is EVERYONE's problem and should be eliminated because it is a threat to seaborne commerce- isn't there a Law of the Sea/Maritime Law or something that compels warships, coast guard vessels and police vessels, etc., to come to the aid of vessels in distress, regardless of nationality? I think that pirate attacks count among those distress situations.

It is generally accepted that all vessels on the high seas (and not just warships or other vessels in the employ of a state) are to come to the assistance of persons in distress at sea.  However under Article 100 of the UNCLOS  "All States shall cooperate to the fullest possible extent in the repression of piracy on the high seas or in any other place outside the jurisdiction of any State".  It should be noted that the jurisdiction of states in regards to piracy ends at the boundary of the territorial waters of a another state.  "The right of hot pursuit ceases as soon as the ship pursued enters the territorial sea of its own State or of a third State".  In the case of Somalia access to and operation within its territorial waters by warships of other states is due to UN Security Council Resolution 1816 which was adopted with the consent of the Somali TFG.

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea - Part VII  (that section of the convention that deals with activities on the HIGH SEAS)

Resolution 1816 (2008) Adopted by the Security Council at its 5902nd meeting on 2 June 2008  (link to full text of resolution opens in pdf)

7. Decides that for a period of six months from the date of this resolution, States cooperating with the TFG in the fight against piracy and armed robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia, for which advance notification has been provided by the TFG to the Secretary-General, may:

(a) Enter the territorial waters of Somalia for the purpose of repressing acts of piracy and armed robbery at sea, in a manner consistent with such action permitted on the high seas with respect to piracy under relevant international law; and
(b) Use, within the territorial waters of Somalia, in a manner consistent with action permitted on the high seas with respect to piracy under relevant international law, all necessary means to repress acts of piracy and armed robbery;

8. Requests that cooperating states take appropriate steps to ensure that the activities they undertake pursuant to the authorization in paragraph 7 do not have the practical effect of denying or impairing the right of innocent passage to the ships of any third State;

9. Affirms that the authorization provided in this resolution applies only with respect to the situation in Somalia and shall not affect the rights or obligations or responsibilities of member states under international law, including any rights or obligations under the Convention, with respect to any other situation, and underscores in particular that it shall not be considered as establishing customary international law, and affirms further that this authorization has been provided only following receipt of the letter from the Permanent Representative of the Somalia Republic to the United Nations to the President of the Security Council dated 27 February 2008 conveying the consent of the TFG;

10. Calls upon States to coordinate their actions with other participating States taken pursuant to paragraphs 5 and 7 above;

11. Calls upon all States, and in particular flag, port and coastal States, States of the nationality of victims and perpetrators or piracy and armed robbery, and other States with relevant jurisdiction under international law and national legislation, to cooperate in determining jurisdiction, and in the investigation and prosecution of persons responsible for acts of piracy and armed robbery off the
coast of Somalia, consistent with applicable international law including international human rights law, and to render assistance by, among other actions, providing disposition and logistics assistance with respect to persons under their jurisdiction and control, such victims and witnesses and persons detained as a result of operations conducted under this resolution;

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

Simple question:  If so many shipowners choose to register their ships in places like Liberia, and fly those flags of convenience, why should we intervene at all?  Let NATO warships escort and assist cargo ships registered within NATO.  If, for example, Paul Martin wants to run a company called, say, Canada Steamship Lines, with all the vessels flying foreign flags,
Hmmm...

Naval units are bound by international law to come to the aid of fellow mariners in distress, to start crossing off ships that are not owned by NATO/EU interests or crewed by the same only exposes every sailor to death and injury. Perhaps when the West do not charge exorbirant rates to register a ship in ones own country, will you see ships no longer sail under a flag of convenience. I disagree with it too but I understand why.

I can see no compelling reason for Canada, not the beneficiary of any registration fees etc, to provide military support.

Well its either escort these food ships or have another humanitarian nightmare on our hands. At least help is getting to some people.

As was said piracy is every mariners concern.

 

[Slim]

I can see no compelling reason for Canada, not the beneficiary of any registration fees etc, to provide military support.

What about the thousands of cruise ships (with Canadians on board) that opperate in waters that pirates frequent? Or all of the shipped goods, bound for this country, that are at risk due to pirate attacks?

Kind of short sighted there bud! I can tell you first hand, having been staff on an ocean liner, that even the threat of attack from either shore or another vessel is very scarey and it is the responsability of every nation to assist in protecting shiping of any kind against piacey!

 

[Blackadder1916]

Somali pirates die in fighting with Puntland forces: official

AFP 22 hours ago (13 October 2008)

MOGADISHU (AFP) — Forces from the Somali breakaway region of Puntland on Sunday attacked pirates holding a Somali cargo freighter, triggering clashes that killed two pirates and a soldier, an official said.

Four others, including another Puntland soldier, were wounded when the forces attempted to rescue MV Awail, owned by a Somali trading company with a crew of 13 Syrians and two Somalis, which was seize Thursday off the region's shores.

The fighting comes amid mounting pressure over piracy in the waters around Somalia, with US and international navies blockading a kidnapped Ukrainian vessel loaded with tanks and weapons.

"They surrounded the (Somali) ship this morning near Hafun area, where they exchanged fire with pirates killing two of them. One of our men also died," said Muse Gelle Yusuf, governor of Puntland's Bari region.

"Three pirates and a policemen were wounded," he told AFP by phone.

"We are expecting that forces will manage to free the ship in a few hours because the pirates on board are few and they have been besieged."

Meanwhile, delicate negotiations were placed on hold earlier Sunday over a 10-million-dollar (7.5-million-euro) ransom request by pirates holding a Ukranian arms ship off the Somali coast.

Pirates had earlier agreed to free the MV Faina, hijacked late last month, but later walked out of the deal demanding Somali mediators be withdrawn.

"The talks between pirates and ship owners totally stopped yesterday (Saturday) after the pirates insisted Somali brokers be removed from the process to negotiate," said Ahmed Abshir Hasan, an elder in the Somali coastal town of Harardhere, where the MV Faina is anchored.

"The commanders of the pirates on the ship reported to us that the talks totally stopped. We don't know why they refused those brokers in the last minutes after working between them for the last week," he told AFP.

The hijackers have reportedly settled for a 10-million-dollar (7.4-million-euro) ransom after initially demanding more than three times that sum, but the figure could change.

"They agreed to receive 10 million dollars for the release of the ship but the talks were stopped because of the Somali brokers. They said the process will resume in four days with new brokers," said another local elder, Abdullahi Moalim Afrah.

"We were close to agreeing on a ransom (figure) but we got out of that deal because of the Somali brokers who are going between us," one of the pirates told AFP.

"We don't want any Somali broker to get involved in this deal and that is why we stopped the talks," he added, who declined to give his name.

US warships and navies from other nations are shadowing MV Faina to prevent the pirates from offloading the cargo.

At least 69 ships have been attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia since the start of the year alone. Almost half were successfully boarded and held for ransom.

The Gulf of Aden is one of the world's busiest maritime routes and under increasing surveillance from foreign warships, leading pirates to venture further out to catch their prey.