Saudi Arabia has decided that it needs to play its fair role in confronting international piracy, particularly after the hijacking of Sirius Star, the Saudi-owned supertanker seized over the weekend. The tanker, which holds 1/4 of one day’s production of Saudi oil is being held off the coast of Somalia.
While Saudi Arabia’s Navy is small, it does have ‘blue water’ capabilities. It can take part in anti-piracy patrols and is sufficiently armed to sink any pirate vessel, from attack boats to ‘mother ships’ from which they descend. The Saudi Navy is probably not large enough to do port-to-port escort duty, even for only the super-est of tankers, but might manage shorter escorts, through particularly dangerous waters. It might also be used in the Gulf of Aden, where most (but not this) hijackings occur, if only to release other vessels to do longer ranged patrols.
The Saudi Arabian Coast Guard is really not competent to take on these kinds of duties. Its role is different, largely protecting the coasts, ensuring boat safety in Saudi waters, and limited anti-smuggling activities.
The new Saudi assertiveness (which surprises and dismays commenter Chucho to some extent) is pretty hot. Arab News, in an editorial, does call for attacks on the port cities of Somalia that are hosting the pirate fleets. And yes, ‘collateral damage’ is always a possibility when military action is taken. I don’t see any way to get around that. But perhaps if Arab armed forces were required to face up to that reality, it might change some of the overblown rhetoric about other unintended casualties in other wars.
After Hijacking, Saudi Foreign Minister Says Nation
Will Join Anti-Piracy Efforts
Faiza Saleh AmbahJIDDAH, Saudi Arabia, Nov. 18 — Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister on Tuesday condemned the hijacking of a Saudi supertanker carrying $100 million in crude oil, calling piracy “a disease that has to be eradicated.”
The 1,080-foot Sirius Star was seized by Somali pirates Saturday off East Africa. Its owner, Vela International, said the tanker is thought to be anchored off the coast of Somalia.
Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said his country would join international efforts to battle piracy, which has surged to levels unseen in modern times.
…
The Indian Navy is claiming success in sinking a pirate ‘mother ship’ in the Gulf of Aden. According to this Associated Press report (I’ve seen it datelined as coming from both Nairobi and New Delhi), the frigate INS Tabar engaged a pirate ship after it refused to halt for boarding and inspection (a permitted demand under the new UN resolution) and started firing upon the Indian Navy’s ship. The frigate returned fire, sinking the ship and chasing off two smaller attack boats.
Indian navy sinks suspected pirate “mother” ship
(NAIROBI, Kenya) An Indian naval vessel sank a suspected pirate “mother ship” in the Gulf of Aden and chased two attack boats into the night, officials said Wednesday, yet more violence in the lawless seas where brigands are becoming bolder and more violent.
Separate bands of pirates also seized a Thai ship with 16 crew members and an Iranian cargo vessel with a crew of 25 in the Gulf of Aden, where Somalia-based pirates appear to be attacking ships at will, said Noel Choong of the International Maritime Bureau’s piracy reporting center in Malaysia.
“It’s getting out of control,” Choong said.
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November:19:2008 - 10:18
>> But perhaps if Arab armed forces were required to face up to that reality, it might change some of the overblown rhetoric about other unintended casualties in other wars. <<
That’s a very good point. My dismay has more to do with the idea of Saudi Arabia asking the West to engage in naval assaults on cities of a country it has in the past intimated has been a victim of Western military interventions.
Yes, it would be great for Saudi Arabia to “stand up” instead of using Western proxies (a process that allows the religious establishment the Saudi gov’t tolerates *and coddles* to spew anti-Western propaganda into Saudi society), but I would go further and offer alternatives to Naval assaults on port cities that would kill non-combatants: arm the cargo ships, escort the cargo ships and follow India’s lead: blow those mosquito boats out of the water as they approach. These are guys in glorified row boats with rinky-dink RPGs for Christ’s sake! (An RPG’s range is shorter than the range of weapons and radar on even the most basic naval warships, no? It’s not like these guys have shoulder-fired rockets.)
And of course: the white elephant is the fact that Somalia is a mess and nobody seems to know what to do about it. George HW Bush decided to make it his pet project of democracy and failed by passing that quagmire to Clinton. Everything the US tried to do in Somalia failed and there seems to be no desire to confront the problem . . . until some ships get hijacked.
One other point that’s slightly off topic: This amazing story has underscored another tragedy (with the capture of that Ukrainian ship): that big superpowers are basically using African regional conflicts to sell weapons, helping prop up their own industries — something that doesn’t get a whole lot of coverage is all the “hardware” countries like Ukraine, Germany, Spain, even India, etc., are selling to African countries. I read that Romania is one of the largest exporters to Africa of the world’s deadliest weapon of mass destruction: the AK-47. Spain is the No. 1 supplier of bullets for those guns in West Africa (Nigeria being another pirate haven). That’s another interesting angle to this story — it’s not just oil and cheap crap from China being shipped through these lanes. Yes, I realize countries have rights to buy military hardware, but Africa is a mess filed with regional and tribal conflicts and it seems that it’s just being used in a lot of cases to unload military products. And these weapons don’t always end up in the hands of angels. But I digress.
November:19:2008 - 10:18
Indian forces fired back, sparking fires and a series of onboard blasts — possibly due to exploding ammunition — and destroying the ship.
Will there be stories of how the dead pirates were “good Muslims” and that violent jihad against non-Muslims is the proper response?
November:19:2008 - 10:18
Apparently the defense of shipping lanes has been outsourced to India just like everything else. LOL.
I do think that private security forces would put a dent in pirate activity. A handful of well armed and trained Blackwater-types should be able to fend off any boarding attempt by a bunch of Somalis. Are the Gurkhas still busy in Iraq? Probably not, so grab some of them.
November:19:2008 - 10:18
I think it’s a good time to invest into private security firms. Anyone knows where I can buy shares of Blackwater?
In fact, I’m surprised that the Blackwaters of the world haven’t already jumped into the fray given how long we’ve known of the danger of Somali pirates.
November:19:2008 - 10:18
I agree that this will be outsourced. What with automation, ship crews are too small to handle it themselves. The Saudi supertanker only has a crew of 25!
And I truly appreciate (and am appropriating, Aaarg!) ratherdashing’s joke on outsourcing!
Small arms aren’t a real problem for the ships, but anything larger is. There are laws that prohibit most arms on vessels any larger than an automatic rifle. Those laws may need to be tweaked in order to allow heavier armaments.
Owners will have to eat the expense of hiring, feeding, and housing more guards, but I’m sure the insurance companies will give them adequate encouragement.
More activity and cooperation among nations with navies will help mostly in surveillance and tracking, I think.
November:19:2008 - 10:18
[...] Arabia, reports on the kingdom's plans to get more involved in the attempts to control piracy: Saudi Arabia has decided that it needs to play its fair role in confronting international piracy, [...]