We cover piracy, armed robbery at sea, IUU fishing, maritime cyber security and maritime security issues.
By Godfrey Bivbere
THE spate of pirate attacks in Nigeria’s maritime domain has been attributed to dearth of ships to engage the growing number of unemployed seafarers.
Linked to this is also the problem of lack of sea-time training for the cadets being produced annually from various maritime academies in the country.
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Source: vanguardngr.com
BY Desmond Ejibas
The Nigerian Navy has deployed troops on board six warships, including 60 gunboats, in a special military exercise to tackle pirates, oil smugglers and other criminals in the nation’s waters.
Rear Adm. David Adeniran, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Naval Command (ENC), Calabar, announced the deployment at the flag-off of the exercise in Onne, Rivers.
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Source: pmnewsnigeria.com
Chaos at sea: Pirates are said to have hijacked the tanker “Aegean II” in the Gulf of Aden, the shipping service “G-Captain” reported at the end of August. Two days later it was reported that men in police uniforms had boarded the “Aegean II”. They took the weapons from the private security forces on board the ship and demanded money from the 20-member ship crew. As a Spanish military ship approached, they disappeared as quickly as they had come. It is still unclear whether the perpetrators were pirates – or even Somali policemen.
It is not only in eastern Africa that the security situation for international merchant shipping is critical. In its “Piracy Report”, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) reported 162 pirate attacks worldwide and 130 hijacked ships last year. This represents a 20 percent decrease compared to 2018. But in some areas the situation is different, where the danger increases significantly.
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Source: welt.de
Justice. I. Sani of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has convicted the duo of Eimiuhi Gabriel and Godwin Ossai and their company, Ehikioya Associates Nigeria Limited, for operating a vessel, MT Madam Esther in Nigerian territorial waters without due licence and registration from the appropriate authority.
The trio was arraigned on a one-count charge each by the Benin Zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes, EFCC. They pleaded guilty to the charge when it was read to them.
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Source: channelstv.com
Press Release
THE Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) and EUNAVFOR have held discussions about developing their partnership in conducting counter-piracy operations in the region.
CMF’s Combined Task Force 151, an anti-piracy task force led by the Turkish Navy, held discussions with Commander of EUNAVFOR’s CTF 465, Rear Admiral Riccardo Marchiò via a video teleconference.
CTF 151 Commander, Rear Admiral Inanir said: “It is important that we continue discussions with our partners, especially in this crucial part of the world.”
“Today we talked about planning joint exercises, focused operations and information sharing. We need to ensure that there are no gaps in our routine patrols, so that we are both able to respond to incidents effectively,” RADM Inanir added.
Whilst the CTF 151 staff conducted the call from the CMF headquarters in Bahrain, RADM Marchiò was operating from the Italian frigate, Luigi Rizzo, as his task force commence counter piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden.
CMF’s CTF 151 and EUNAVFOR’s CTF 465 both operate in a contentious region which is home to a number of the world’s most strategic chokepoints, and piracy and armed robbery at sea remain a threat to merchant shipping in the region.
Both commanders agree that the size of the area is a challenge that can only overcome by effective cooperation, demonstrating the importance of the partnership shared by CMF and EUNAVFOR.
“There are many merits to coordinating exercises and military campaigns together; warships are able to operate efficiently together,” said RADM Riccardo Marchiò.
“The south west monsoon season continues in the region, with associated blustery weather and a high sea state. As the weather eases, it becomes more feasible for pirates to operate again,” said RADM Inanir, concluding the call. “CTF 151 and CTF 465 must be ready and alert to prevent them.”
In a year of unabated insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea, one of the most welcomed maritime security-oriented acts of 2019 was Nigeria’s establishment of its Deep Blue Project. The Integrated National Security and Waterways Protection Infrastructure, otherwise known as the Deep Blue Project (DBP), aims to comprehensively address insecurity and criminality in Nigeria’s territorial waters and exclusive economic zone. The means of the DBP involve the acquisition of assets, (e.g., unmanned aerial vehicles and fast intervention vessels), development of infrastructure (e.g., new command and control centers), interagency information-sharing, and enhanced training of security services, among other things. According to the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), between August 2019 and June 2020, 80 percent of the necessary assets had been delivered and the Command, Control, Computer Communication, and Information Centre (C4i) was officially launched at NIMASA’s base in Kirikiri, Lagos.
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Source: stableseas.org
In an unusual step, MDAT-GoG, the agency which monitors piracy and maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea, has issued the following alert to shipping:
Description: Information from military source indicate an armed group from Rivers State, NIGERIA are planning a piracy attack against vessels in area D (especially Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea) since the 1st of September. It is likely the attack will occur at low tide, when the monitoring units are missing. Therefore, you are requested to be on maximum alert, to increase vigilance and surveillance and intensify intelligence both on the water and in the port. Systematically identify and search all suspicious boats coming from or leaving Nigeria. Report any suspicions and take into account any diversion.
MANILA – The Philippine Navy (PN) on Tuesday said the arrival of new patrol assets will greatly enhance its patrol capabilities and prevent terrorists and other criminals from sneaking in.
“This situation will be best addressed through the modernization of our assets that we are now continuously pursuing, particularly the acquisition of the Philippine Fleet’s Fast Attack Interdiction Craft (FAIC) project and the Philippine Marine Corps’ Combat Raid and Interdiction Boats as well as its Small Unit Riverine Craft (SURC),” PN chief Vice Admiral Giovanni Carlo Bacordo said.
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Source: pna.gov.ph
India and Nigeria on Tuesday vowed to deepen cooperation to counter terrorism, insurgency and piracy while also boosting trade exchanges as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held talks with his Nigerian counterpart Geoffrey Onyeama.
The two foreign ministers discussed the entire gamut of India-Nigeria bilateral relations via video conferencing.
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Source: business-standard.com
KOTA KINABALU-The confinement order in the waters of seven districts in the eastern zone of Sabah (ESSZone) which ended at 6 pm this day was extended until September 17.
Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Hazani Ghazali said orders that prohibit the community in the area are involved out of the house or enter the waters of Tawau, Semporna, Kunak, Lahad Datu, Kinabatangan, Sandakan and Beluran to take effect from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily.
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Source: sinarharian.com.my
Maritime Security News 