Armed vessels worry navy

[Ray]

Armed vessels worry navy

New Delhi, Dec. 3: Merchant vessels carrying weapons and combatants in the seas around India pose threats similar to the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai, the navy has warned.

Calling such vessels "floating armouries", navy chief Admiral D.K. Joshi today said that many such ships were "entirely unregulated."¦ This has very serious security implications for us including the infiltration of terrorists".

Ostensibly, these ships and combatants escort merchant vessels for counter-piracy actions. But the intentions are not always stated.

Pointing to the confiscation of the MV Seaman Guard Ohio — a US-owned but Sierra Leone-flagged ship — off Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, earlier this year, the navy chief made a case for a coastal security law that would bring the state governments within the security grid operated by the navy. The vessel had 25 armed guards of four different nationalities.

"There are close to 140 private security companies operating in North Indian Ocean, which hire... armed security personnel," he said.

"These personnel shift between vessels at sea, without entering any port or coastal state-regulated maritime territory. There are scores of ships operating as floating armouries outside any coastal state jurisdiction.

"Lack of any provisions to deal with such vessels or armed personnel hampers legal actions. We have recommended that this necessitates formulation of a regulatory framework by the International Maritime Organisation."

Joshi added: "If there are unregulated arms and ammunition on a vessel, the existence of the weapons is not known as also where the guards are transferring them, and this could lead to such a situation (the Mumbai attacks) on anybody's soil."

Armed vessels worry navy

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Given the piracy that is rampant in the waters around Somalia and near Philippines, there is a genuine requirement to have armed naval hired guns patrolling for the safety of the vessels that shipping companies pay for.

The national navies do not provide individual protection nor are merchant vessels permitted to carry weapons, and in any case, owing to computerisation, the crew on board these days, are minimal.

Yet, on the other hand, these armed vessels could also be used for arms smuggling to equip insurgents, terrorist and anti socials.

In Fact, what was the US ship registered in Sierra Leone, doing in Indian waters and not providing legitimate documentation, remains a mystery!

 

[lookieloo]

In Fact, what was the US ship registered in Sierra Leone, doing in Indian waters and not providing legitimate documentation, remains a mystery!

1. Sierra Leone is a common flag-of-convenience for private vessels.
2. Pirate attacks have taken place quite close to India and said waters are probably a good place to pick up a security detail.
3. That such a ship failed to pass India's inane/capricious bureaucratic-documentation standards is hardly surprising.

If you don't want armed mercs off your cost, go do something about the damned pirates.

 

[Ray]

1. Sierra Leone is a common flag-of-convenience for private vessels.
2. Pirate attacks have taken place quite close to India and said waters are probably a good place to pick up a security detail.
3. That such a ship failed to pass India's inane/capricious bureaucratic-documentation standards is hardly surprising.

If you don't want armed mercs off your cost, go do something about the damned pirates.

Each country has its rules.

It always look capricious to the others.

Do as the Romans do, or stay at home!

No one can do much about pirates.


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Iran accuses Gulf States of supporting Somali piracy

The state-run Fars News Agency quoted General Mohammad Nazzeri, of Iran's navy as claiming, "the pirates of the Gulf of Aden are simple fishers but their sponsors and main leaders are Sheikhs of the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and Saudi Arabia. They provide the Somalis with money, weapons and equipment."

The claim seemed strange to Jay Bahadur, author of the book The Pirates of Somalia, who said, "what reason would these littoral Arab states have for sabotaging shipping going through their backyard?"

While the three accused states might not have serious interests in combating piracy, they may host elements that collude with the Somali pirates, those familiar with Somali piracy said.

"'Supporting' is probably too strong a word. Connections and involvement by citizens of those countries? Yes," said Peter Eichstaedt, a journalist who has lived and worked in east Africa. "I spoke with pirates and former pirates, and others have documented this as well, who say that Dubai acts as a hub for much of the pirate financial activity. Ransom money is moved in and out of Dubai. Once pirates collect their ransom, fleets of Toyota Land Cruisers are purchased in Dubai, along with other sorts of high-demand items."

Yemen, said Eichstaedt, may play a contributing role because of its proximity. He says said because of its location across the Gulf of Aden from Somalia, Yemen ends up hosting a lot of clandestine activity. Yemen is also facing acute degradation to its state institutions, which could further incentivise those who operate outside the law to use it as a base.

However, there seems to be no evidence that Yemen formally supports piracy. "Saudi connections are hard to pinpoint," said Eichstaedt. "Saudi extremists may be supporting the Al Shabab fundamentalist fighters in southern Somalia. The Saudi connections could involve Somalia pirates used to transport weapons and personnel into and out of Somali to support the Al Shabab cause.

"The UAE has invested more than most in combating piracy," said Bahadur.

Last month, Dubai hosted a conference titled "A Regional Response to Maritime Piracy: Enhancing Public-Private Partnerships and Strengthening Global Engagement." As part of the conference, naval staff member Ibrahim Al-Musharrakh outlined two Gulf approaches to proactively combat piracy.
Al-Musharrakh pointed out that in addition to diplomatic efforts such as the conference, the Emirates have contributed money and resources to the cause, as well as raiding a pirate-controlled ship in 2011. He recommends the formation of a Gulf Cooperation Council anti-piracy military force that would patrol the waters around the region.

The Iranian accusations came United Nations report on Somalia was leaked recently, claiming pirates were being shielded from prosecution by a number of high-level Somali officials.

The report specifically cited President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, who heads the Transitional Federal Government, as being a party to the protection of pirates.

The report notes with 237 incidents, 2011 saw the highest-ever level of Somali pirate activity. The report also stated that piracy, specifically in the Gulf of Aden, has steadily decreased.
However, piracy in the Gulf of Aden continues to capture the world's attention because it occurs in a pivotal energy thoroughfare that connects the Arabian Sea to the Red Sea and Suez Canal.
SOURCE: Daily News Egypt

Iran accuses Gulf States of supporting Somali piracy - SaveOurSeafarers

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There are many interests involved to ensure that the pirates survive!

Political and financials.

And Big Powers are also involved.

Big business!

 

[W.G.Ewald]

TIMES are tough and getting worse for Somali pirates, as their targets take countermeasures. The number of attacks off the Horn of Africa tumbled from 236 in 2011 to no more than 72 in 2012, according to the International Maritime Bureau, a body that monitors crime at sea.

Now a private naval effort is adding to their woes. A company called Typhon will use a 10,000 tonne "mother ship" to accompany convoys of merchant vessels. With 60 mostly armed, mostly British ex-soldiers on board, it will deploy speedboats and unmanned drones to watch and intercept hostile boats.

Anthony Sharp, Typhon's boss, says customers will find that more efficient than putting armed guards on every ship. It will also spare them keeping guns on board (which is tricky in law). Typhon plans to have three large ships by the year end, with at least one based in the Gulf of Guinea, a hotspot for pirate attacks last year, and ten by 2016.

Piracy: Privateers | The Economist

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Indian Coast guards are working around these waters so does Indian navy warships ..

Must formulate some laws which prohibits such vessels inside Indian waters ..

To deal with outlaw armed mercenary vessels there must be heavily armed IN ships and helicopters on stand by ..

 

[TrueSpirit1]

There are many interests involved to ensure that the pirates survive!

Political and financials.

And Big Powers are also involved.

Big business!

Sir, can you throw some light on this ?

 

[Ray]

The article indicates the interests at play.

Also see this:

Do you earn more money than a Somali pirate?
Do you earn more money than a Somali pirate? | GlobalPost

 

[W.G.Ewald]

The article indicates the interests at play.

Also see this:

Do you earn more money than a Somali pirate?

Do you earn more money than a Somali pirate? | GlobalPost

Such persons are an affront to the memory of Edward Teach of Bath, North Carolina, our own Blackbeard.

Pirates themselves benefitted little, often earning "less than 0.1 percent" of the ransom.

Instead, kingpins at the head of criminal networks with connections across the Horn of Africa and the Gulf were the real beneficiaries of Somali piracy.

The bosses took up to 75 percent of the ransom for themselves, often reinvesting it in a range of criminal activities.

NC Historic Sites - Historic Bath - Blackbeard the Pirate

Blackbeard arrived in Bath sometime in June 1718, and immediately received from Governor Eden the "gracious pardon" of the Royal Proclamation. And legend says that a subterranean passage was cut from the cellar of Eden's mansion to the steep bank of the creek, so that Blackbeard could enter and depart without being seen. The implication, of course, is that Eden was taking his own share of the pirate's loot. Such a tunnel probably never existed, but there was a path of ballast rocks that led from Eden's place to a pier on the creek nearby.