Tag: Indian Ocean

Gen Kianga said the recently acquired vessel will guard the country against piracy attacks Chief of General Staff Jeremiah Kianga has commissioned a ship to be used in the war against piracy.Gen Kianga, who is due to retire within a few months, said the recently acquired vessel would boost surveillance along the Indian Ocean coastline and guard the country against attacks from the Somalia-based al Shabaab militants.He was received by Navy Commandant Samson Mwathethe on Monday.Gen Kianga went straight into a meeting with top commanders at Kenya Navy headquarters in Mtongwe soon after his arrival at Moi International Airport.Bidding them farewellA senior Navy officer, who cannot be named because he is not authorised to speak to the press, said the Chief of General Staff told top navy officers that the visit could be his last one at the Kenya Navy headquarters."There are some work-related issues that he discussed with the senior officers but he seemed to be bidding them farewell. He told them to remain focused and hardworking," said the source.His security personnel blocked efforts by the Nation team to interview or take pictures of the outgoing boss."Please don't take pictures and no interviews. He is not ready to talk ...

To make Indian Ocean a safe region for maritime trade India and Mozambique have agreed to work together on the issue of maritime security so as to make Indian Ocean a safe region for maritime trade.This was agreed to during the delegation level talks between the visiting Minister of National Defence of the Republic of Mozambique Filipe Jacinto Nyussi and Defence Minister AK Antony on June 28. Nyussi thanked India for the help rendered by Indian Navy in the rescue of a Mozambican shipping vessel from pirates off the Mozambican coast last year. The issue of piracy off the East Coast of Africa prominently figured during talks between the two leaders.Both sides had a fruitful discussion on various bilateral defence cooperation issues. A number of fresh areas for cooperation were identified to enhance and strengthen the existing bilateral relation between the two countries.The Mozambican Defence Minister also met Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma, Chief of Army Staff General VK Singh and the Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshall NAK Browne. During his five-day visit he will visit key defence installations including the Western Naval Command in Mumbai, National Defence Academy and Armed Forces Medical College in Pune ...

Publication of 50,000 hard copies of BMP 4 The Industry partners who have come together to produce the BMPs are alsofinancially sponsoring the publication of 50,000 hard copies of BMP 4 so that they can be distributed to Industry on a free-of-charge basis.Additionally this year, a DVD has been produced by Steamship Mutual and endorsed by many association signatories.The challenge for the Industry is to ensure the widest possible distribution and use of BMP 4. Then they have to be implemented onboard.Naval Authorities now report on a monthly basis, the names of vessels which have failed to fully implement BMP, and organisations are being pushed toraise an internal investigation to verify compliance of their members.The three Fundamental Requirements of BMP remain, and it is important that these are adhered too:ReportRegisterImplement Self Protection MeasuresThe new guidelines are expected to be released later this month.

All vessels operating in the High Risk Area are recommended to implement BMP Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) has issued the following advisory:A merchant vessel reported coming under attack at 0949Z on 26 June 2011 in position 21:45N - 060:31E, approximately 118nm from Masirah, Oman in the Indian Ocean. This area will remain high risk for at least the next 24-48hours.The Maritime Administrator would take this opportunity to again urge all vessels operating in the High Risk Area to actively implement recommended Best Management Practices for anti-piracy measures as follows:Prepare the crew (refer to Marshall Islands MG-2-11-12)Harden the ship before the ship enters the High Risk Area (HRA)When entering the HRA from the direction of either the Suez Canal, the Arabian Gulf at 26N, the south at 15S or from the east at 78E: Register the ship with the MSCHOA (http://www.mschoa.org /+44 (0) 1923 958545); Report to the UKMTO ([email protected] / +971 505 523 215); and Continue to provide daily reports of ships position, course, speed and estimated and actual arrival times to UKMTO while in the HRA. Remember, the ship must be registered with the MSCHOA and report to the UKMTO with every intended transit of the HRA; Consider ...

A matter of urgency Unions are ramping up the rhetoric in their threats to boycott shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean where the risk of hijack is the highest.In the latest development the London-based International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) has adopted a motion that calls for "a high level strategic planning task force to begin as a matter of urgency the necessary planning to implement the call to refuse to sail in the area".The motion, adopted at last week's meeting of the ITF seafarers' section in Buenos Aires, notes the situation in the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden (jointly referred to as "the area") was now so serious the ITF's seafaring affiliates could no longer tolerate it.It points to the stark statistics of 4,185 seafarers being attacked last year, 1,090 being held hostage for "many months" and, at the time of the meeting, 19 ships and 411 crew being held captive.Thousands have also been subjected to "gunfire, beatings, confinement and, in some cases torture and murder".It adds, "Unless governments, including flag states, redouble their efforts to eradicate the problem of piracy, the ITF seafarer affiliates believe the moment is fast approaching when we can no longer accept ...

Foreign governments have to take measures for piracy Indian seafarers are threatening to refuse to sail to the pirate-infested waters of the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean if foreign governments fail to halt the increasing violent attacks on seafarers.The statement from Abdul Gani Serang, general-secretary of the National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI), follows growing concern in India about the risks to Indian seafarers.There have been nationwide protests following the continued kidnap of seven Indian crew members of the Asphalt Venture, who Somali pirates still hold captive despite the payment of a ransom to release the ship and eight other crew members. Somali pirates currently hold captive about 50 Indian seafarers.Abdul Gani Serang commented that: They are kidnapped, taken hostage and going through terrible psychological trauma, and even their families suffer in silence. But little attention is given by international governments.Meanwhile, naval forces operating in the Gulf of Aden and other danger waters are continuing to take action to prevent attacks and rescue victims. In an operation in the Gulf of Oman on 16 May, naval forces are reported to have killed four pirates attacking the German-owned, Panama-flagged supertanker Artemis Glory.On 13 May, a French warship disrupted a ...

Marine Ops Note 08/2010 - Marine Security Advisory 01/2011- MSC.1/Circ.1337 In response to piracy attacks that have occurred outside the previously defined pirate activity area, the Liberian Administration has revised the setting of MANDATORY SECURITY LEVEL II for all Liberian flagged vessels when transiting the Gulf of Aden and the High Risk Area (HRA) for piracy in the Red Sea, Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean., effective immediately.For further information, click here.Source: Republic of Liberia

In the first months of 2011 included 248 total incidents The numbers of reported maritime security incidents off Somalia and in the Indian Ocean continue to grow, writes Steven Jones of the newly formed Security Association for the Marine Industry (SAMI).The 2011 data makes grim reading, as the first few months of the year have included 248 total incidents. The Maritime Security Review figures include, amongst others, 191 incidents of piracy or attempted piracy, 8 acts of terrorism and 27 incidents of piracy and hijack of vessels.As piracy attacks rise, private security guards are being used to safeguard vessels from hijack. Some owners/operators use unarmed personnel, while increasingly others are opting for armed security teams. Given that, to date, no vessel has been hijacked while carrying armed guards it is perhaps understandable that the carriage of weapons is becoming more accepted.The tactics used by pirates are well documented, and from either shore bases, or more commonly motherships, they send out speedboats and skiffs full of pirates to attack ships. The pirates fire machine gun rounds and rocket propelled grenades and hope to gain access to the vessel and take it over. They then hold the crew and vessel for ransom.Such ...

Fire warning shots in the direction of the suspected pirate vessel During the morning of 13 May, the EU NAVFOR Portuguese warship NRP Vasco da Gama successfully intercepted a Dhow which is suspected of operating as a pirate mothership.The Dhow, whose original crew were being held on board by the suspected pirates as hostages, was attempting to deploy into the Indian Ocean and was considered to be a clear and present danger to merchant shipping in the area. For this reason, the Portuguese warship warned the Dhow verbally to turn around and make its way back to the pirate anchorage.Only when the verbal warnings were ignored did the NRP Vasco da Gama and her helicopter fire warning shots in the direction of the suspected pirate vessel. The Dhow quickly turned around and make its way back toward the Somali coast. The Portuguese warship monitored the suspected pirates until they reached their anchorage.With the onset of the South West Monsoon in the area, which brings with it worsening weather and rough seas , this may have been the last chance that this particular pirate group would have had to deploy into the Indian Ocean to attack merchant vessels.The NRP Vasco da ...

State of lawlessness The worldwide shipping industry as well as the ITF and unions have roundly condemned the latest development in the Indian Ocean piracy crisis. The incident involves the ordeal of the Indian crew of a merchant ship, who are being held by pirates despite payment of a ransom.The 15 crewmembers of the tanker Asphalt Venture were held following the hijack by Somali pirates on 28 September. After a ransom was paid, the ship was released on 15 April. However, six officers and one rating were forced to accompany the pirates ashore, in spite of dialogue with the owners during which it was agreed that all hostages would be released.It has been suggested that pirates in Harardhere in Somalia decided not to honour the agreement in retaliation for the recent arrest of Somali pirates by the Indian navy.In a statement released on 18 April, shipping industry bodies, the ITF and its affiliates the National Union of Seafarers of India and the Maritime Union of India said: "This is a fundamental change to previous practice and moves the issue from being just between the ship owner and the pirates to being between the pirates and a government. It is a ...