West Africa to be the global piracy hotspot
According to latest media reports, the European Union said that it was preparing to increase security efforts in the Gulf of Guinea, the West African maritime region that has become a global piracy hotspot.
The new measures, likely to be announced in October, will however not include sending warships to the region, a move that helped reduce pirate attacks off East Africa, said German Rear Admiral Jurgen Ehle, who heads an EU military working group for West Africa.
“The EU is developing a Gulf of Guinea strategy,” Ehle said, adding that European leaders would likely finalise the document “by the end of October”.
Speaking to a maritime security conference in Nigeria’s economic capital, he said the EU’s efforts will focus on helping improve coordination between regional navies, training and other measures, rather than deploying forces.
Source: Maritime Security Review
