Piracy Cannot Be Solved By Force Alone, Pentagon Warns

Piracy Cannot Be Solved By Force Alone, Pentagon Warns (NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON — December 14, 2008: The Pentagon warned Friday that piracy rampant in the Horn of Africa cannot be solved by force alone, as the United States circulated a draft UN resolution to chase pirates even on Somali soil. Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman declined to say whether the US was ready to take military action if the resolution is adopted.(Seen in Photo: Vice Admiral William Gortney and Vice Admiral Kevin Cosgriff) "We're looking at how the military can contribute to an overall solution with respect to piracy," but "this needs to be looked at more broadly," Whitman said. "We've indicated for some time now that this is an activity that concerns us and that we're going to be looking at the issue broadly and with partners in the region." But the US Fifth Fleet commander said Friday that the US Navy would go after pirates off Somalia if the international community came up with a process for holding and trying them as criminals. "I don't need any authority for offensive actions against the pirates. I have all I need," said Vice Admiral Bill Gortney, who recognized that without an international legal process for trying pirates, navies have had little choice but to release those captured. The resolution, which diplomats indicated could be adopted as early as Tuesday, would be the fourth approved by the UN Security Council since June on piracy off Somalia's coast. The resolution would authorize for one year states already involved in fighting piracy there to "take all necessary measures ashore in Somalia, including in its airspace, to interdict those who are using Somali territory to plan, facilitate or undertake acts of piracy and armed robbery at sea," according to a copy of the text obtained by AFP. "While there may be a military component, this is an issue that needs to be addressed more broadly, diplomatically," warned Whitman, who indicated the US is working with its allies on legal, practical and other issues associated with the resolution. Under the resolution, states and international organizations would also establish an international cooperation mechanism to coordinate anti-piracy efforts. The Minnesota-based activist group Somali Justice Advocacy Center expressed "grave concern" Thursday on the prospect of taking the fight inland, describing the resolution effort as a "futile exercise" since Somalia is largely controlled by warlords and extremist militias. "I find that not only odd but illegal and a clear violation of the code of the international law," said the group's director Omar Jamal. Somali pirates have attacked at least a hundred ships since the beginning of the year. They currently hold at least 17 ships, including an arms-laden Ukrainian cargo vessel and a Saudi supertanker carrying two million barrels of crude oil. The international community has significantly stepped up its anti-piracy military apparatus off the Somali coast. Britain and Kenya signed a memorandum of understanding Thursday for the British navy to hand over to Kenya any suspected pirates it may seize during operations in the Gulf of Aden or Indian Ocean.