Tag: maritime security

Capturing pirates in the high seas have become an extremely difficult task Maritime Piracy is a threat to all nations and is a crime subject to universal jurisdiction. States are called upon to favourably consider the prosecution of suspected and imprisonment of convicted pirates, consistent with applicable International Human Rights Law and United Nations Security Council Resolutions.Pirates are considered by International Law as common enemies of all mankind. The world naturally has an interest in the punishment of offenders and is justified in adopting international measures for the application of universal rules regarding the control of terrorism. The common understanding between States has been that pirates should be lawfully captured from the high seas.Capturing pirates in the high seas have become an extremely difficult task due to the vastness of the area and lack of resources. Despite attempts to concerted acts of nations and the United Nations to combat piracy they freely engage in disturbing the world peace by attacking the economy by blocking and harming the sea routes. The only way the goods and especially oil and gas are transported via high sea. Most ships are unarmed. Even though they are armed in the high seas pirates can be ...

Fifth Peace Palace Library Lecture about Piracy in Somalia The meeting's central theme was the international community's efforts in combating and prosecuting pirates.Commodore Michiel Hijmans discussed the operational aspects of military operations to combat piracy, focusing on NATO's counter-piracy operations.Commodore Michiel Hijmans was Commanding Officer of the Standing NATO Maritime Group, conducting the sixth months operation 'Ocean Shield´ (counter piracy), 'Operation Active Endeavour´ (counter terrorism) and other operations. Marten Zwanenburg discussed the legal aspects of such operations. Marten Zwanenburg is Senior Legal Advisor at the Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands.He holds a doctorate in international law from the University of Leiden. Henny Baan discussed the prosecution of the arrested pirates

Held in Kota Kinabalu,Sabah Malaysia from 8 to 10 February 2012 The second ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) Experts' Working Group (EWG) on Maritime Security was held in Kota Kinabalu,Sabah Malaysia from 8 to 10 February 2012.The Meeting was co-chaired by Ms. Suriani Ahmad, Undersecretary Policy and Strategic Planning, Ministry of Defence, Malaysia and CDRE Vince Di Pietro, Director General Navy Capability, Plans and Engagement of Australia. The meeting was attended by representatives of all ASEAN Member States and the Plus Countries, except for Myanmar and India. Brunei Darussalam was represented by 290 Lieutenant Colonel (L) Abang Abas bin Abang Haji Omarzuki from the Royal Brunei Navy (RBN) and two Research Officers from the Directorate of Defence Policy, Ministry of Defence.The Second EWG on Maritime Security Meeting was built on discussions arising from the inaugural EWG meeting on Maritime Security held in Perth, Australia in July last year. The meeting is to further deepen the specific initiatives for defence and military practical cooperation to help enhance capacity building on maritime security for member states. During the Meeting, Malaysia presented a proposal concept paper titled ADMM-Plus Expert Working Group on Maritime Security Future Development for ADMM-Plus member states to consider. It ...

To increase shipping efficiency and maritime security Union Shipping Minister Sh. Vasan has dedicated the Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) for the Gulf of Kachchh to the nation, at Kandla Port in Gujarat today. The concept, design and implementation of the entire scheme were done by the Directorate General of Lighthouses & Lightships (DGLL) team, under the Ministry of Shipping. VTS is a co-ordinated measure and services of a number of sensors like Radars, Automatic Identification System (AIS), etc. and they all are integrated to develop an overall scenario by which appropriate advice can be given to the Master of the vessel. This will help in improving waterways and harbour management, increase shipping efficiency and above all help the regulatory authorities and security agencies in detecting unlawful activities and anti national activities.Sh. Vasan said in his inaugural speech that establishment of a VTS for the Gulf of Kachchh had been a long felt need though the completion was delayed due to difficult terrain and logistical challenges. The scheme has been implemented at a cost of about Rs.165 crore, with 50 per cent contribution from DGLL, 25 per cent from Gujarat State Maritime Board and 25 per cent from Kandla Port Trust.The ...

The course is designed to help the expanding international shipping industry tackle threats The world's first MSc in Maritime Security has been launched by the University of Greenwich. The course is designed to help the expanding international shipping industry tackle threats such as piracy and terrorism on the high seas. It will also deal with new issues affecting environmental and energy security, and aims to equip graduates, security personnel, serving and former members of the armed services with the professional skills they need to succeed in senior management roles in this growing professional sector.The university's Greenwich Maritime Institute (GMI) has teamed up with its School of Engineering and Natural Resources Institute (NRI), with Marine Insurance and Maritime Crime Consultants and with the Security Association for the Maritime Industry (SAMI), to develop the course. It draws on the institute's established strengths in maritime management, policy and history as well as the university's wider expertise in engineering, technology, energy, environmental science and the Law of the Sea.SAMI, which provides an independent regulatory forum for the maritime security industry, has contributed its professional knowledge of the sector.The career development opportunities offered by this new qualification are expected to attract interest from people currently ...

Says Gray Page Gray Page, the specialist maritime intelligence, investigation and crisis management company, said that laws, regulations and guidelines already exist against which armed maritime security providers (AMSPs) can be scrutinised.The assessment criteria that Gray Page uses in its Armed Maritime Security Provider Vetting Programme incorporates, for example, extant British and EU legislation on the ownership, licensing and control of firearms and ammunition, the compliance requirements enshrined in conventions such as the International Code of Conduct (ICOC) for Private Security Service Providers, and guidance published the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), the International Group of P&I Clubs and flag States including the UK Department for Transport.James Wilkes, managing director, Gray Page, commented: "It is a misconception that there are currently no standards against which the legitimacy and competency of AMSPs operations can be measured. There is plethora of criterion that can reasonably be applied in vetting the activities of an AMSP. We support the call for maritime-specific regulation, but on-going industry deliberations in that respect do not obviate the regulations and laws that already exist with which AMSP should comply."Our vetting programme is exposing the fact that a significant majority of AMSPs are not demonstrably operating within existing legal and ...

Cooperation across the Gulf countries The inaugural Maritime Security and Surveillance Conference concluded last week, highlighting several important themes, including the need to continue building cooperation across the Gulf countries in the areas of maritime surveillance and security operations.Lieutenant Commander Sheikh Mubarak Ali Y. Al Sabah, Chief of Maritime Operations, Kuwait Coast Guard, discussed in detail about areas of cooperation, and explained that cooperation is key in tackling the various maritime threats that the region is facing.One of the initiatives taken by the region's maritime authorities is the establishment of a GCC Maritime Centre in Bahrain. This centre aims to boost security in the Gulf, including that of vital shipping lanes for oil exports. Members of the GCC have agreed to share information and contribute assets to the centre."Approval has been given from all GCC leaders," said Sheikh Saeed bin Hamdan Al Nahyan, Deputy Commander of the UAE Navy.According to Lieutenant Commander Sheikh Mubarak Ali Y. Al Sabah, a primary problem in the Gulf waters is drug traffickers where a bust is made every two to three weeks. After each bust, the GCC nations share information about the incident and the lessons learnt.Currently, an emerging concern in the region is ...

To boost its maritime defence technology by 2015

To ensure the safety of cruise ships arriving in Dubai Dubai Maritime City Authority (DMCA), the maritime government entity charged with regulating, coordinating and supervising the maritime sector in Dubai, has announced the establishment of a cruise ship task force in line with its continued efforts to ensure the safety of cruise ships arriving in Dubai and to reinforce Dubai's preparedness to deal with potential maritime accidents.The cruise ship task force has been established in collaboration with Dubai Tourism & Commerce Marketing (DTCM).DMCA further revealed that it is intensifying maritime inspections to ensure that cruise ships comply with maritime standards and to create awareness among ship owners and cruise operators about the need to improve the performance of cruise ships according to best practices in the industry.Hamad bin Mejren, DTCM Executive Director for Business Tourism, said:"Dubai is keen to adopt best practices related to the safety of cruise ships, in line with international standards and norms. DTCM has partnered with DMCA as part of our commitment to ensure that cruise trips from Dubai will set a global standard in terms of safety and readiness to handle various eventualities, as well as to provide world-class logistical and technical support to the ...

Maintaining round the clock vigil in the Maritime Zones of India The Indian Coast Guard is celebrating its 35th anniversary tomorrow. Since its inception, the service has grown into a multi-faceted and vibrant force, maintaining 'round the clock' vigil in the Maritime Zones of India, by deploying its multi-role ships and aircraft.Beginning with a modest inventory of two ex-naval frigates, the service today boasts of a force-level of 68 ships and 52 aircraft. During the past year, one ship, four interceptor boats, four Dornier aircraft and two Chetak helicopters have been commissioned into service, in addition to the establishment of six CG Stations and two Air Enclaves.The Indian Coast Guard today, is on a path of rapid expansion, as a large number of state-of-art ships, boats and aircraft are under-construction at various shipyards/PSUs. The service is expected to attain a force-level of 77 surface platforms and 56 aircraft by end 2012. The Coast Guard will also have 42 CG Stations, four Air Stations and 11 Air Enclaves functioning all along the coast, by the end of 2012.On the manpower front, the service has initiated several measures to augment its manpower viz. introduction of short service appointment for women officers and ...