Piracy Off Coasts of Somalia And Atalanta Operation (FOCUS News Agency)
December 29, 2009

There are five Bulgarian sailors aboard James Park tanker, which sails under a British flag and was hijacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. FOCUS News Agency gives a brief historical inquiry about the roots of the problem, Atalanta operation and international community’s actions. The first EU navy operation was approved on 10 November 2008, which targets the pirates in the Gulf of Aden and coasts of Somalia. The mandate of the operation expired in December 2009, but it was extended by a year.

The European Union is conducting a military operation to help deter, prevent and repress acts of piracy and armed robbery off the coast of Somalia.
This military operation, named European Union Naval Force Somalia – Operation ATALANTA, was launched in support of Resolutions 1814, 1816, 1838 and 1846 which were adopted in 2008 by the United Nations Security Council.

Its mandate is to contribute to:
• The protection of vessels of the World Food Programme (WFP) delivering food aid to displaced persons in Somalia;
• The protection of vulnerable vessels sailing in the Gulf of Aden and off the Somali coast.
• Employ the necessary measures, including the use of force, to deter, prevent and intervene in order to bring to an end acts of piracy and armed robbery which may be committed in the areas where they are present.

The operation which was scheduled for an initial period of twelve months has now been extended by the council until Dec 2010. During this period up to 12 EU ships and a number Maritime Patrol Aircraft will operate at any one time.

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On 24 April 2009 after the end of the donor conference in Brussels USD 213 million was donated to Somalia. The stabilization of the country is the number one goal so that it could be accepted again by the international community and stop the piracy off its coasts, the participants in the conference say.
“If we are occupied only with the symptoms and not with the roots of the disease, the piracy in the Somali territorial waters will not disappear,” sums up EC President Jose manual Barroso.

Hijacked
On 11 November 2009 Somali pirates hijacked two ships in the Indian Ocean.

On 8 April 2009 a Danish ship sailing under a U.S. flag was captured by pirates off the coasts of Somalia. The crew of the Maersk Alabama ship regained the control on the vessel.

On 12 April 2009 the U.S. captain kidnapped by Somali pirates was released after a shooting in which three of his four hijackers died and the fourth one was detained.

On 2 May 2009 Somali pirates announced they hijacked a Ukrainian ship, whose cargo belongs to the UN.

On 2 May 2009 a British ship transporting 35 tons of soya was hijacked by Somali pirates in the waters of the Gulf of Aden. According to the initial information the 26 crew members, all Ukrainian citizens, were unhurt.