EU NAVFOR defended in UK
THE COMMANDER of the EU’s anti-piracy operation today defended its effectiveness to a British parliamentary committee.
Royal Navy Rear Admiral Peter Hudson has been giving evidence on EU NAVFOR’s Operation Atalanta to the House of Lords EU Sub-Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Development Policy.
Hudson was asked about the continued high frequency of pirate attacks on shipping since the start of the operation more than a year ago. He acknowledged that there was little difference between the number of attacks in 2008 and 2009.
"The general trend has been steady", he told the hearing, but also said this might be due to an increasing number of ships reporting false alarms. "We are trying to sort out what are alarmist calls and what are genuine attacks.
"My focus is trying to drive down the number of ships that are seized", he added.
Hudson also warned that he's dealing with adaptive pirate groups that exploit EU NAVFOR's weaknesses.
"They loiter near those north/south shipping routes, knowing that the distance will always be my constraint."
The committee is also seeking information from Hudson on the interaction between Atalanta and NATO and coalition maritime forces that operate in the area, as well as resources including maritime patrol aircraft that are part of the EU operation.
This story was originally published in Sea-Sentinel Safety At Sea
© Lloyd's Register - Fairplay Ltd. 1996 - 2010
THE COMMANDER of the EU’s anti-piracy operation today defended its effectiveness to a British parliamentary committee.
Royal Navy Rear Admiral Peter Hudson has been giving evidence on EU NAVFOR’s Operation Atalanta to the House of Lords EU Sub-Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Development Policy.
Hudson was asked about the continued high frequency of pirate attacks on shipping since the start of the operation more than a year ago. He acknowledged that there was little difference between the number of attacks in 2008 and 2009.
"The general trend has been steady", he told the hearing, but also said this might be due to an increasing number of ships reporting false alarms. "We are trying to sort out what are alarmist calls and what are genuine attacks.
"My focus is trying to drive down the number of ships that are seized", he added.
Hudson also warned that he's dealing with adaptive pirate groups that exploit EU NAVFOR's weaknesses.
"They loiter near those north/south shipping routes, knowing that the distance will always be my constraint."
The committee is also seeking information from Hudson on the interaction between Atalanta and NATO and coalition maritime forces that operate in the area, as well as resources including maritime patrol aircraft that are part of the EU operation.
This story was originally published in Sea-Sentinel Safety At Sea
© Lloyd's Register - Fairplay Ltd. 1996 - 2010
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