Tag: maritime security

he vast majority of cargo containers entering the U.S. go unchecked It's been more than a decade since Islamic terrorists attacked the U.S., yet the agency created to protect the nation from another strike is asleep at the wheel, failing to adequately screen the monstrous amounts of cargo that enter the country each day, according to a government report issued this week."Cargo containers that are part of the global supply chain-- the flow of goods from manufacturers to retailers -- are vulnerable to threats from terrorists ," state thegovernment analysts whoassembled data forthe new report.Itmay seem unbelievable to most Americans that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that more than ten years after the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history, the vast majority of cargo containers entering the U.S. go unchecked. Incredibly, it's true and the alarming details are outlined in the GAO report published this week by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the investigative arm of the U.S. Congress.The Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA) of 2002 and the Security and Accountability For Every (SAFE) Port Act of 2006 required the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to take actions to improve maritime transportation security.Also, the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 ...

Through training and collaborative activities Commander Leonard Milliken, Commanding Officer of USS Simpson (FFG-56), a United States Naval Vessel, has stressed the need to strengthen global maritime partnerships through training and collaborative activities, in order to improve maritime safety and security.Speaking to newsmen during a familiarization tour aboard the vessel on Monday, Cdr Milliken said they were in Ghana to participate in the Africa Partnership Station (APS) programme, an international security co-operation initiative, aimed at strengthening global maritime partnerships, to improve maritime safety and security on the continent.He said more than 40 maritime professionals from the Ghana Navy, as well as 10 ship riders from partner nations, including Benin, Cameroon, Gabon, Nigeria, the Republic of Congo and Togo, are beneficiaries of the training programme.The Commanding Officer said the course participants are being taken through topics in basic first aid and basic damage control.Source: GNA

The shooting incident has heightened diplomatic tensions between the two countries

Ship Tank RSS Endeavour The Republic of Singapore Navy's Landing Ship Tank RSS Endeavour slips off from Oman, and sets a course for the Gulf of Aden. On board are over 270 personnel and the hardware of the 3rd SAF Task Group deployed for operations there.Endeavour is just days away from the area of operations but the tri-service task group is already dealing with a mounting number of suspicious contacts.

The plague of Somali pirates has spawned a lucrative security industry The plague of Somali pirates marauding across the Indian Ocean has spawned a lucrative security industry that boasts 120 companies providing protection and which the Financial Times says "make more money than the pirates."This growing business earns revenue of some $55.2 million a month for security firms such as Hart Security of Britain and Templar Titan of the United States, which provide armed guards for around 1,500 voyages a month, the business daily says.The pirate gangs that prowl 1,500 nautical miles eastward into the Indian Ocean shipping lanes, including the heavy oil tanker traffic coming out of the Persian Gulf, amassed $160 million in ransom money from shipping lines in 2011."Piracy is a lucrative business not only for Somali pirates but to many profiteers who make more money than the pirates themselves," said Peter Cook, director of U.K. Security Association for the Maritime Industry."Some of them are cowboys -- they have no proper security training, they're inefficient, incompetent and they want money."The Security Association, known as Sami, was established in 2011 to accredit companies offering armed and unarmed guards for ships. Cook estimated that by the end of 2012 ...

Deteriorating security in the Gulf of Guinea Deteriorating security in the drought-hit Sahel and an uptick in piracy in the Gulf of Guinea topped the agenda at a West African regional meeting that opened in Nigeria's capital on Thursday.Leaders from the 15 nations that make up the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are also scheduled to pick a new body chairman, replacing Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan whose mandate is expiring.The summit comes amid heightened insecurity in the Sahel region, where Algeria, Mali, Mauritania and Niger face renewed threats from Al-Qaeda's north Africa branch, known as Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Mahgreb (AQIM).Mali has also been forced to combat an offensive launched last month by Tuareg rebels, who have attacked several northern towns since January 17, part of a long-running struggle to secure autonomy for their nomadic desert tribes.France this week offered its first suggestion of a link between AQIM and a key Tuareg rebel group.The unrest in Mali has sparked widespread internal displacement and a surge in refugees fleeing the country. Niger and Burkina Faso, both ECOWAS members, have seen the arrival of thousands of Malian refugees, as has Mauritania, which is not a member of the bloc.The Red ...

Security concession Operators in the maritime industry have warned that the nation risk sanction by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) should it continue with the concession of the nation's maritime domain.The operators made their position known at a one day talk shop put together by the Maritime Reporters' Association of Nigeria (MARAN) in Lagos, noted that there is no where in the world were the security of any nation's maritime domain is handled by a private film as it is being done by the Nigerian government represented by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).The agency recently signed a contract for the Strategic Concessioning Partnership between it and a private firm, Global West Vessel Specialist Nigeria Limited (GWVSNL) to provide platform for Tracking Ships and Cargoes, Enforce Regulatory Compliance and Surveillance of the Entire Nigerian Maritime Domain.National President of the Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola Shittu, condemned the concession. He asked when the project was advertised and further demanded "must everything be in secrecy? He stressed that the outsourcing cannot fly.He wondered why the maritime industry is the attraction of all sorts of experimentation, apparently because NIMASA is one of the richest government organizations, explaining ...

Regarding armed guards onboard The bill to combat piracy in the sea-going ships, adopted at the cabinet meeting yesterday, under Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos.The bill sets out the main lines and procedures for a license to be given in order armed groups to embark on ships and also set outs the rights of seafarers, the use of weapons, bans on Greece and penalties.According to the bill, authorization for the use of armed guards onboard should be given after request of the ship owner. Guards should have the appropriate certification, to be above 21 years old, to have no convictions and not be crew members.In case there is no compliance with the necessary requirements, the decision may be revoked by the chief of the Coast Guard and is valid for six and twelve months, with the charges of a special fee and the right for an extension.The armed group is under the authority of the master, who will have access to arms onboard.The use of weapons and arms may be prohibited if there is an official decision, mandated by the Headquarters of the Coast Guard - Coast Guard Greek or Greek or any other military authority.Any crew member does not ...

Iranian officials recently threatened to close the channel The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln passed through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil shipping lane Iran threatened to close, on Tuesday, officials said.An Iranian patrol boat at one point passed within 2 miles of the carrier, which was protected by a U.S. cruiser and a destroyer, the BBC reported.Iranian officials recently threatened to close the channel, through which 20 percent of the world's oil exports moves, in retaliation for more recently enacted sanctions against the Islamic republic over its nuclear program.Western leaders say they fear Tehran's nuclear activities are aimed at developing nuclear weapons. Tehran maintains its program is for peaceful purposes.It was the second pass through the Strait in recent weeks by the Abraham Lincoln, officials said.Source: UPI

The U.S. Navy able to prevent from blocking the Strait of Hormuz Iran has built up its naval forces in the Gulf and prepared boats that could be used in suicide attacks, but the U.S. Navy can prevent it from blocking the Strait of Hormuz, the commander of U.S. naval forces in the region said on Sunday.Iran has made a series of threats in recent weeks to disrupt shipping in the Gulf or strike U.S. forces in retaliation if its oil trade is shut down by sanctions, or if its disputed nuclear program comes under attack."They have increased the number of submarines ... they increased the number of fast attack craft," Vice Admiral Mark Fox told reporters. "Some of the small boats have been outfitted with a large warhead that could be used as a suicide explosive device. The Iranians have a large mine inventory.""We have watched with interest their development of long range rockets and short, medium and long range ballistic missiles and of course ... the development of their nuclear program," Fox, who heads the U.S. Fifth Fleet, said at a briefing on the fleet's base in the Gulf state of Bahrain.Iran now has 10 small submarines, he ...