U.N. authorizes additional anti-piracy measures

U.N. authorizes additional anti-piracy measures .

The International Chamber of Commerce and the International Marine Bureau provide an interactive map showing all the piracy and armed robbery incidents reported to the IMB Piracy Reporting Center during 2008. The live version of the map is available here

Ongoing AmericanShipper.com Gulf of Aden coverage •   U.N. authorizes additional anti-piracy measures •   Defensive device misused in pirate takeover •   Indian Navy nabs pirates as EU force arrives •   U.S. prepares U.N. anti-piracy resolution •   Box ship outruns pirates(12/8) •   Analysis: Experts predict increased Somali pirate attacks(12/3) •   CMA CGM crews to get bonus for Gulf of Aden trips (12/3) •   Security firm Blackwater reportedly meeting with ship owners (12/2) Guards, overwhelmed by Somali pirates, abandon ship (12/1) •   TMT opts for Good Hope route (11/25) INTERTANKO, BIMCO propose Somali blockade (11/24) •   U.N. passes financial sanctions on Somali pirates (11/21) More carriers vow to avoid area around Somalia (11/21) •   Pentagon asks ocean carriers to do more to tackle piracy (11/20) Hong Kong ship owners call for action on piracy (11/20) •   Saudi mega-tanker still under pirates' control (11/18) Parcel tanker operator will avoid Gulf of Aden (11/17) •   Security firm warns against arming crew to fight piracy (10/16) Call for more action on Somalia pirates (10/10) •   British naval officer advocates mercenaries to fight piracy (10/9) UN passes new Somali piracy resolution with little bite (10/8) •   Ship owners livid with naval response to Gulf of Aden piracy (10/30) Naval coalition 'cannot guarantee safety' in Gulf of Aden (9/23) •   Piracy crisis “spiraling out of control” (9/19) Kidnapping insurer sees upsurge in interest by shipping companies (9/12) •   Hong Kong ship owners blast lack of piracy protection in Gulf of Aden(9/12)

The United Nations Security Council on Monday passed a resolution calling on states and regional organizations fighting piracy to conclude agreements with countries, especially in the Arabian Sea region, willing to take custody of pirates and to put their own law enforcement officials on board as “ship riders” to prosecute detained suspects.
   It also opened the possibility for forces in the area to go after pirates on land by authorizing the use “of all necessary measures that are appropriate in Somalia, for the purpose of suppressing acts of piracy and armed robbery at sea.”
   The regional ship-rider approach is similar to one that has proved successful in fighting drug traffickers in the Caribbean.
   U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also told the Security Council that the problem of Somali piracy could not be divorced from the need for comprehensive peace to the war-torn country that has been without a functioning central government since 1991.
   “Our anti-piracy efforts must be placed in the context of a comprehensive approach which fosters an inclusive peace process in Somalia and assists the parties to rebuild security, governance capacity, address human rights issues and harness economic opportunities throughout the country,' he said.
   Ban Ki-moon recommended strengthening the African Union Mission in Somalia to prevent chaos after Ethiopian troops withdraw from Somalia at the end of the year.
   A multinational force with full military capabilities to squelch armed attacks would be preferable to a traditional peacekeeping force, he said, but no member nations or international organizations have offered to take the lead or participate.
   If the enhanced African Union Mission proved successful, it would pave the way for deploying U.N. peacekeepers and for the Security Council to set up a Maritime Task Force or add a quick reaction component to the current anti-piracy efforts to launch operations into Somalia in support of U.N. humanitarian activities.