Īlthough pirates do not seize a large number of ships, the frequency of attacks and attempted attacks has increased significantly in recent years, especially off the Somali coasts. Attacks have also been reported off the coasts of Bangladesh, Nigeria, Haiti, Colombia, Peru, and Brazil among other places around the world. Not coincidentally, both are chokepoints on critical sea routes. In the past decade, pirate attacks have become commonplace in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia and in the Strait of Malacca between Malaysia and India. Since 2003, the number of pirate attacks has escalated rapidly. Piracy has reemerged as a global concern in recent years.
and other countries should use every means at their disposal to deny the pirates any safe haven-geographical, financial, or legal-and bring them to justice wherever it is most convenient. The U.S., in cooperation with other seagoing nations-an anti-piracy “coalition of the willing”- needs to move beyond defensive measures and start taking the fight to the pirates, attacking every aspect of the pirate networks. In February 2011, piracy took a deadly turn when Somalia pirates hijacked a yacht off Somalia and then killed the four people onboard-all of them Americans.1 Anti-piracy efforts to date have achieved some success, particularly in the Strait of Malacca, but they have failed to halt the spread of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. Not only have ransom payments to pirates funded expanding piracy off the coasts of Somalia and driven up the costs of maritime commerce, but they may be supporting terrorist activities in the region and elsewhere as well.Īt the very least, piracy is helping to perpetuate the lawlessness in Somalia. security issue, especially with the pirates’ growing ties to international terrorism. Piracy is a growing threat to global commerce and is becoming a U.S. The United States and other countries should use every means at their disposal to deny the pirates any safe haven-geographical, financial, or legal-and bring them to justice wherever it is most convenient. Ending the threat from Somali pirates will require shifting from a defensive posture of trying to protect ships passing through the high-risk zones-there are too many ships, too few military vessels, and too many pirates-to an offensive strategy of attacking the pirates at their weak points. While anti-piracy efforts have successfully reduced piracy in the Malacca Strait, Somali pirates have expanded their operations further into the Indian Ocean. Abstract: Piracy is a growing threat to global commerce and is becoming a U.S.
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