EU Atalanta anti-piracy escorts: ships should register for protection

"This is an EU success story, one of the first operations of this kind. In the past year, you have done a great deal of remarkable work", Security and Defence Sub-Committee Chair Arnaud Danjean (EPP, FR), said on Monday, introducing Rear Admiral Hudson, who commands EU Naval Force Atalanta, the EU operation combating piracy off the coast of Somalia.

Avoidable risks

"We have sunk ships, weapons have been destroyed, 36 vessels have been intercepted and 14 direct attacks have been diverted. We’ll stay there and continue the mission”,  Rear Admiral Hudson told a joint meeting of the Security Sub-Committee and Transport and Fisheries committees.

None of the registered and escorted "high risk" cargo ships had been successfully attacked. However, many vessels still fail to register with Atalanta or associated organisations, thus exposing themselves to avoidable risks. So national organizations should encourage registration of ships crossing the Gulf of Aden or the Horn of Africa, said the Rear Admiral.

Partnership with NATO, China and Russia

Pirates are refining their tactics, and, particularly in the Gulf of Aden, human smuggling has recently intensified, he noted.

The Rear Admiral underlined that EU was not alone in trying to combat piracy. "China, Russia and India among others are there and their presence is essential", he added, emphasising that co-ordination had improved, especially with Beijing. NATO is "a key player", with which co-operation had been "extremely effective", he added.

More protection for European fishermen

Transport Committee Chair Brian SIMPSON (S&D, UK), urged merchant ships not to put themselves at risk by neglecting the advice of the EU Naval Force. On behalf of the Fisheries Committee, Alain CADEC (EPP, FR) called for better defence of European fishing vessels, most of which are French, Spanish, or Italian, given that the pirates had recently tended to move south, outside the protected areas.

The pirates are resourceful, and not always easy to distinguish from ordinary Somali fishermen, said the Rear Admiral in reply to MEPs' questions, explaining that NAVFOR Atalanta "couldn't provide individual coverage without compromising elsewhere". But Atalanta had good links with European fishermen and provided as much coverage for them as it could, he added.

Piracy would continue to be a problem in the region, and the cause and the solution were ashore, concluded the Rear Admiral.

EU foreign and defence ministers will debate Operation Atalanta and possible broader engagement in Somalia on Tuesday 17 November.

In the chair:

Arnaud Danjean (EPP, FR)