Egypt Shows No Sign of Military Response to Piracy
The Indian Ocean faces a serious threat from marauding pirates who operate out of Somalia, and who have attacked the ancient sea trade routes linking East with West. Egypt has showed no immediate response to the problem, and has not opted to join the international community in fighting this growing menace. According to Reuters, the Egyptian government does not consider the issue to be important to it. One Egyptian Defense Ministry source told Reuters that ” that piracy was an international problem and had to be solved in an international framework.” This probably sums up the Egyptian government’s stance on the issue.
The Egyptian government does have the military capability to fight the piracy threat, but according to some analysts its concern is directed at keeping piracy out of the Red Sea, which it considers traditionally to be within its sphere of influence.
Ahmad Aljoaan
