Somali piracy report published

With this in mind, the report makes recommendations regarding the duration of Operation Atalanta, the World Food Programme and the vessels being used by the programme and contributions from the insurance and shipping industries to combating pirates in the region

Methods used by pirates in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean remain basic. The success of Operation Atalanta and other efforts means that pirates have been forced to operate further offshore in the Indian Ocean, increasing their risk of detection as they have to use larger vessels. Given this displacement of piracy further into the Indian Ocean, it is all the more important that Atalanta has the right capabilities.

The report agrees with the increasingly robust action taken against pirates by Atalanta forces, arguing that there is a need to change the perceived risk/reward ratio for pirate activity. It welcomes the EU’s agreements with Kenya and the Seychelles to prosecute pirates, and the negotiations now taking place with other states in the region and is waiting see the number of successful prosecutions that will result.