Middle East Politics.Net » Gulf of Aden http://middleeastpolitics.net Facts, News, Trends, Analysis Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:56:32 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Chinese To Join Other Navies in Gulf of Aden http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/25/chinese-join-other-navies-in-gulf-of-aden/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/25/chinese-join-other-navies-in-gulf-of-aden/#comments Fri, 26 Dec 2008 06:20:30 +0000 davidhulme http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/25/chinese-join-other-navies-in-gulf-of-aden/ According to the NYT Dec 26, 2008, “The Piracy Reporting Center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, said Friday that 110 ships have been attacked in the gulf [of Aden] this year, and 42 have been hijacked. Fourteen ships are still being held for ransom.” This is part of the reason that China is sending warships to protect Chinese vessels carrying 60% of its oil imports and also raw materials from Africa. Both kinds of cargo cross the Gulf of Aden, the area suffering most from Somali pirate infestation. Chinese warships have not ventured outside of the Chinese region since the 15th century. They will join international efforts by other navies against this current form of piracy.

David Hulme

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/25/chinese-join-other-navies-in-gulf-of-aden/feed/ 0 Yemen Taking Efforts to Stop Piracy http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/22/yemen-taking-efforts-to-stop-piracy/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/22/yemen-taking-efforts-to-stop-piracy/#comments Sun, 23 Nov 2008 04:28:27 +0000 bkeenan http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=2729 Due to the recent ship hijackings in the area around Yemen, the state is to initiate a group of 20 countries to stop piracy in the area.  The group will be targeting piracy in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The regional center for the group will be located in Yemen and two other locations will be opening up in Tanzania and Kenya in the near future.  These locations will hopefully prevent future piracy hijackings in the area.

Brad Keenan

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/22/yemen-taking-efforts-to-stop-piracy/feed/ 0 Somali Pirates Killed off the Coast of Yemen http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/17/somali-pirates-killed-off-the-coast-of-yemen/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/17/somali-pirates-killed-off-the-coast-of-yemen/#comments Tue, 18 Nov 2008 00:25:07 +0000 bkeenan http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=2518 On November 11, the HMS Cumberland of the UK’s Royal Navy killed two Somali pirates after a firefight.  The HMS Cumberland was on patrol in the highly pirate-infested waters of the Gulf of Aden, when it saw a small wooden boat that was involved in a hijacking attempt of a Danish cargo ship.  The HMS Cumberland sent small boats out to surround the pirate ship, but after ‘non forcible methods’ to make the pirates stop, they opened fire on the HMS Cumberland and the vessels that it sent out.  During the fight, two Somali pirates were killed.  This is yet one more story involving pirates and attempted hijacks in the Gulf of Aden.

Brad Keenan

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/17/somali-pirates-killed-off-the-coast-of-yemen/feed/ 0 Yemen Takes Steps to Combat Piracy http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/09/11/yemen-takes-steps-to-combat-piracy/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/09/11/yemen-takes-steps-to-combat-piracy/#comments Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:32:18 +0000 hootstei http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=272 In light of recent attacks, it was announced September 10, that Yemen will be launching a regional center to combat piracy. The center will provide assistance and support to ships and vessels that are attacked in the Gulf of Aden. The announcement was made by Khalid Al Wazir, Yemen’s Transport Minister.

The center will be a collaborative effort between Yemen and 20 other countries as well as the International Maritime Organization. The participating countries will sign a memorandum of understanding pledging cooperation to fight piracy. Yemen will also be taking a particularly active role by hosting a week-long regional meeting on the subject October 23-30, 2008.

Yemen has also teamed up with the United States in regards to the problem. On Sunday September 7, 2008, Yemen’s Defense Minister Mohammed Nasser Ahmed met with Admiral Philip Greene, commander of the United States task force in the Horn of Africa. The meeting discussed ways to developed “bilateral military relations between the armies of the two countries, particularly in fighting terrorism and sea piracy.”

These steps to deal with the situation followed two very recent attacks in the Gulf of Aden. First, on August 19, a Malaysian tanker with 39 passengers on board was hijacked. Ten days later, a second Malaysian vessel with a crew of 41 was hijacked in the same waters while en route from Saudi Arabia to Singapore.

Yemen’s active stance in fighting piracy illustrates how the country is able to successfully collaborate with other nations-especially Western countries like the US. This case exemplifies how despite their differences in culture or ideology nations can at times successfully work together to create policy. Yemen’s stance on piracy illustrates how differences can be overcome to work for good and to prevent injustice.

Jenna Hootstein

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