UAE’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan (photo) said: “Countering piracy has for long been a top priority for the UAE. As a maritime nation, the UAE has a strong interest in the security and openness of international sea lanes. This is why, every year, the UAE hosts a major counter piracy conference that brings together all of the relevant counter piracy stakeholders from around the world. This year will see the fourth instalment of this landmark event.
The period between 2009-2011 witnessed a sharp rise in the number of pirate attacks, especially in Gulf of Aden, Somalia Basin, and Indian Ocean. The attacks damaged major maritime shipping lanes and jeopardised the lives of seafarers and commercial ships worldwide. Countering the threat of maritime piracy demanded a coordinated regional and international response.
The results of that collective response are clear. Recent years have witnessed a steep decline in the number of pirate attacks around the coast of Somalia. While in 2011 Somali pirates attacked 236 ships, there have only been 15 such incidents throughout 2013. This year, the number of pirate attacks remain in the single digits. This remarkable success is testimony to the effectiveness of international counter-piracy cooperation in the Horn of Africa.
The UAE has for long been a leading proponent of this regional and international cooperation and has sought to raise awareness about piracy in the Arab world. In the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS), which unites 80 countries, international organisations, and the maritime industry in the fight against piracy, the U.A.E. co-chairs the Working Group on "Maritime Counter-Piracy and Mitigation Operations" with Japan and the Seychelles.
The UAE also cooperates closely with its partners in Somalia and the Seychelles to build local capacity, tackle root causes of maritime piracy, and prosecute offenders. Our support of the Regional Anti-Piracy Prosecutions Intelligence Coordination Centre (RAPPICC) in the Seychelles is just one example. We have also done much to boost our own naval capacities and improve port security.
Thanks to the participation of high-level delegates, the conference has distinguished itself as an important annual forum for representatives from the shipping industry, government and academia to take action on issues affecting global maritime security. This year, the UAE, along with our regional and international partners, took the discussions further by addressing piracy's root causes in developing countries.
Inevitably, this struggle will continue. Taking the war against piracy to land will be even more challenging and complex than driving pirates out of our waters. But to secure our maritime commons, there is simply no alternative.”
Source: WAM
