Commodore Rune of NATO said in 2010, military cooperation is a key part in the effort to combat piracy, thus provide safe passage for international merchant shipping. Collaboration is proven to be beneficial and contributes positively to maritime security in dangerous waters. The decrease of piracy off the coast of Somalia for the past five years was driven through two major factors, the involvement of the international naval patrols, and the shipping industry’s best management practices with the use of armed security personnel on commercial vessels. Several nations, including the United States, deploy naval forces to dangerous areas to provide surveillance and interdiction capabilities.

The United States and its allies can assist developing nations to build basic capabilities by providing training and equipment to improve maritime security. However there are countries such as India that is reluctant to officially collaborate on a multilateral rather than bilateral basis on maritime security issues. Despite these positive trends in Somalia, it is premature to claim “mission accomplished” in the fight against piracy.Attacks have now expanded eastwards, across the Indian Ocean.

Recent report says, piracy in the Gulf of Guinea is now more than off the coast of Somalia. The International Maritime Bureau IMB, OBP and MPHRP have reported 851 victims in Somali while 966 were attacked in the Gulf of Guinea in 2012, mostly in national territorial waters off Nigeria. The pirates are mostly veterans of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), and are after oil cargoes or some personal property on the vessels rather than kidnapping for ransom. On the side of human cost, piracy in the Gulf of Guinea is more violent with the largest numbers of victims are Filipino, Indian, Russian, Nigerian and Chinese, and very few are from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries.

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Tidbits:

Pirates might have a romantic image, but modern piracy is a criminal menace that is a threat to the lives and livelihoods of many seafarers. In recent years, thousands of seafarers have been killed, injured, assaulted, taken hostage or threatened as piracy and armed robbery have increased dramatically.

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“Be rested, stay awake and stay safe.”