Tag: Indian Ocean

However, the ministry is capable of carrying out such an operation Contrary to media reports, the Navy has no immediate plans to send a patrol fleet to the Indian Ocean to protect Taiwanese fishing boats in the pirate-infested area, a defence ministry official said Monday.However, although it is not on the cards at the moment, the ministry is capable of carrying out such an operation and is well prepared, Deputy Defence Minister Chao Shih-chang said. Chao was responding to recent reports that Taiwan planned to deploy a fleet to the Indian Ocean sometime this month to protect Taiwanese fishing vessels from attacks by Somali pirates.The action was being taken based on a directive from the National Security Council (NSC), the reports said. However, Chao said in a legislative session that the information was false. The military carries out NSC directives in line with government policies and in collaboration with relevant agencies, such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on issues such as dispatching flotillas to protect deep-sea fishing vessels and crewmembers, he said.The issue of whether to send a Navy fleet to the Indian Ocean surfaced after incidents of Taiwanese fishing boats being hijacked by Somali pirates in the region ...

Indian Ocean in the spotlight The past week saw a number of discussions, in different forums, that turned the spotlight on the Indian Ocean and its strategic importance for countries in the region as well as outside. Coincidentally, it appears. Here in Sri Lanka there was the 'Galle Dialogue,' a two-day international conference on maritime security organised by the Ministry of Defence and the Sri Lanka Navy.A talk held in Colombo on Thursday at the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies as part of the India-Sri Lanka Foundation's inaugural lecture series, also dealt with related issues. On the topic of "India and Sri Lanka and the Asian resurgence," the speaker, former Indian Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran drew attention to the shift in the centre of gravity in the global economy towards India and the Pacific.In his presentation at the Galle Dialog, the US delegate Robert M. Scher, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for South and Southeast Asian Affairs, remarked on the increased importance that US policymakers assigned to the Indian Ocean.He said it "now surpassed the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as the "world's busiest and most critical trade corridor." Parts of the speech seemed to reflect the influence of Robert D. ...

Ransom has gone up to $ 5 million per person. In a show of unity, 19 countries decided on a consortium approach to combat pirates on high seas by stepping up maritime security in the Indian Ocean, a region utilized by 70 per cent of the oil-liners to ship crude oil to ports across the world.The Council of Ministers of the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) released a communiqué saying, "We have committed to cooperate fully through sharing of information and technical assistance to jointly combat this (piracy) menace."Pointing out that the menace of piracy had assumed alarming proportions in recent years, the 'Bengaluru communiqué' said increasing cases of piracy off the Horn of Africa posed a threat to international and regional navigation, maritime commerce and safety of sea farers. "In this regard, we support the international efforts at the United Nations, initiatives at the regional level and the contact group on piracy off the Coast of Somalia, which is coordinating anti-piracy efforts," it said.The meeting also agreed on the association serving as an effective forum vehicle for sharing information, experience and best practices to combat piracy on the high seas in the region. Australian foreign minister ...

A need for joining forces in order to fight piracy off Indian Ocean Co-operation among countries with interests in the Indian Ocean is essential to effectively fight Somali piracy against merchant ships which could threaten trade if unchecked, a Sri Lanka defence official said."It is our belief that the lasting solution to threats of this nature cannot be undertaken by individual nations in isolation, but only through greater international cooperation," declared Gotabaya Rajapaksa, secretary to Sri Lanka's defence ministry.Steps taken by ship owners against hijackings of merchant vessels have been seen to be largely ineffective, he told the "Galle Dialogue" Maritime Conference which opened Monday in the southern port town of Galle.And interventions made by individual nations in providing greater protection for merchant vessels have not been uniform, he said.Military officers and academics from 19 countries are taking part in the forum, which was initiated in 2010 by Sri Lanka to help foster cooperation between nations interested in the security of the Indian Ocean region."In the present era, the increasing sophistication of criminal networks and non-state actors makes it difficult for individual nations to withstand the threats posed by them if they stand alone," Rajapaksa said."That is why Sri Lanka, ...

Says South Africa's Deputy Minister of International Relations, Ebrahim Ebrahim A common approach is needed among Indian Ocean Rim countries to combat challenges relating to maritime transport safety and security, says South Africa's Deputy Minister of International Relations, Ebrahim Ebrahim.Speaking at the 11th Council of Ministers meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Co-operation (IOR-ARC) here Tuesday, he said Indian Ocean Rim countries should continue to provide impetus to develop such exchanges among member states to improve the situation.Ebrahim said South Africa was keen to work with India and Australia, as well as the other member states of the IOR-ARC, in their quest to take the association forward, with the view to consolidating and deepening exchanges among member states."Our government will work to ensure that South Africa continues to relate to the Indian Ocean Rim as well as traditional and new partners in a manner that best supports our future growth trajectory," he added."Our development process requires special policies and measures considering developmental challenges such as unemployment and income disparity both within South Africa and our region."Ebrahim mentioned that the South African Development community (SADC) region had already developed a Maritime Anti-Piracy Strategy which was aligned to United ...

Indian Ocean is being used to transport weapons for terrorist groups The United States says the Indian Ocean is being used to transport weapons for terrorist groups.Deputy U.S Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asian Affairs Robert M. Scher told a conference in the Sri Lankan southern city of Galle on Monday that the Indian Ocean has also become a transit hub for proliferaters.He was attending a maritime security conference in Galle which also has participants from several other countries including China, India and Singapore apart from the hosts Sri Lanka."There are also more actors engaged in the Indian Ocean than ever before. These include nation states both in and outside the region, many of whom that are developing increasingly capable militaries. As a result, the U.S. is taking a renewed look at how this region affects us and how we can best address our interests," the U.S. Embassy in Colombo quoted Scher as saying.He said that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction across the Indian Ocean region is another challenge that threatens to undermine the peace and stability of the region.Source: Xinhua

Higher ransom demands lengthen negotiations and the duration seafarers are held hostage Kenya's operation against Al Shabaab in Somalia has helped reduce ransom demands on captured ships as pirates seek to close deals before a battle between the militants and Kenyan forces at Kismayo.Shipping experts said that the amount of ransom demanded by pirates for vessels had dropped by about 50 per cent and could fall further in coming days once "Operation Linda Nchi" (Defend the Country) is completed."Initially, the pirates holding captive the Algerian flagged MV BLIDA were demanding $6 million to release the vessel and her multi-national crew. But a package of $3.5 million was delivered on the vessel and they freed it," said Andrew Mwangura, the Seafarers' Assistant Programmes (SAP) coordinator.It is believed that the militants offer protection to pirates in exchange for cash, arms and logistics in a pirate value chain estimated to be worth between $4.9 billion and $8.3 billion.MV BLIDA with its 27 crew was hijacked on January 1 on her way to Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania from Salalah in Oman.The turn of events comes as a relief to shippers who are shouldering the commercial burden of piracy along the gulf of Eden.Maritime sources privy to ...

Indian Ocean Exploration The first time scientists explored deep in the Indian Ocean, they found a new species of glowing squid. Now researchers who are departing from South Africa on Monday with even better equipment are hoping for similar success.In 2009, the scientists collected some 7,000 samples including the newly discovered squid, which has light-producing organs that it uses to attract its prey. Researchers aboard the RRS James Cook are taking along special cameras for photographing the ocean floor - something they didn't have last time."We don't know much about the deep sea community," Aurelie Spadone, a sea specialist with the International Union for Conservation of Nature, said in a telephone interview Monday before setting out on the Indian Ocean expedition. "It would be very surprising if we don't find something like a new species."Spadone's trip is focused on learning more about how deep sea fishing is affecting marine life along seamounts - peaks rising from the floor of the southern Indian Ocean.Carl Gustaf Lundin, director of IUCN's Global Marine and Polar Programme, said many of the species that live around seamounts grow and reproduce slowly, so overfishing can severely affect their populations."Deep-sea bottom fisheries, including bottom trawling, can damage ...

The country will host an international conference next year to help tackle piracy Australia called on Friday for tougher action against piracy in the Indian Ocean and announced it would host an international conference next year to help tackle the growing problem.Pirates attacked a record number of ships worldwide in the first nine months of 2011, but are making off with fewer vessels due to better policing by international naval forces."Piracy off the Horn of Africa has seen murders and hundreds of seafarers taken hostage," Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd told an Indian Ocean Piracy Forum on the sidelines of a Commonwealth summit in the west Australian city of Perth."Piracy has also increased the costs of international trade, and done enormous harm to regional countries' fishing and tourist industries. More must be done to prosecute, convict and imprison pirates," he said.Cooperation between Somalia's al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab militants and pirate gangs is growing as they become more desperate for funding, said the head of the U.N.'s counter-piracy unit, John Steed.Rudd said next year's conference in Perth would seek to assist Somalia and other states tackle the drivers of piracy and compare counter-piracy cooperation in other regions, such as Southeast Asia ...

A pirate has often Europe is not doing enough to fight back against Somali pirates and the tragedy is being felt at both a human and economic level. The European Union should fight piracy by all necessary means. The current approach to piracy is insufficient. It is time for a more effective approach to a rapidly growing problem. Last week, Georgios Koumoutsakos MEP and I organised a hearing on piracy in the European Parliament. Speakers from the Polish EU-Presidency, the International Maritime Organisation, the European External Action Service, the European Naval Force Somalia and the European Communities Ship-owners´ Association underlined that the problem of piracy is not solved - but is, in fact, growing.In the first nine months of 2011, as many ships and seafarers were hijacked near Somalia as throughout the whole year of 2010. And while the real "hunting season" has yet to begin this year, the monsoon has just ended. Not only are the coastal waters off Somalia dangerous, but the entire Indian Ocean between India and Mozambique is a haven for thousands of pirates.The average time to reach agreement on a ransom is one year. And the ransom price has risen sharply, from several million United ...