Indonesia calls out Malaysia for ‘ineffective’ security following fresh kidnappings

JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/ANN): The government has lambasted the “ineffective coordination” of Malaysian authorities following the abduction of five Indonesian fishermen last week in waters off Sabah, the latest incident to underscore the lack of security in the tri-border area between Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Six members from a faction of the notorious Abu Sayyaf militant group abducted on Thursday five Indonesian fishermen from their trawler in Sabah’s easternmost waters off Lahad Datu, about 10 minutes from the Tawi-Tawi chain of islands in the southern Philippines.

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Source: thestar.com.my

Indonesia plans to buy bigger ships for coast guard

Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia plans to buy bigger vessels to allow its coast guards to travel across the ocean, notably the Natuna Sea off Riau Islands, and expand their patrol reach, local media reported.

The plan was announced after Indonesian Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto had reportedly bought frigates for the Indonesian Navy from Denmark.

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Source: en.vietnamplus.vn

Eight Abducted from Trawler Off Sabah

The ReCAAP ISC has issued an incident alert after the abduction of eight crewmen from a fishing boat off Sabah, Malaysia.

The Philippine Coast Guard reported that six gunmen dressed in black suits with masks used a gray speedboat with twin engine (40 HP) to abducted the eight from the Malaysia-registered fishing trawler SSK 00543.

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Source: maritime-executive.com

MarsecNews: Ironically, following the rescue of the last Indonesian fishermen held by Abu Sayyaf Group terrorists last week, I was poised to warn that we should expect another kidnap operation in the coming days. It seems they beat me to it.

Duke Crew Released by Pirates, One Died in Captivity

Following the attack on the oil tanker MT Duke and abduction of 20 crew members on December 15, U.K.-based shipowner Union Maritime has issued a statement confirming that 19 of the crew members have now been released.

One able seaman was evidently taken ill and died shortly after capture. Union Maritime said in a statement: “We are seeking further information from those crew members that have been released and a full investigation will be held into the AB’s demise.”

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Source: maritime-executive.com

Piracy: Seafarer Wants FG To Equip Navy, Marine Police

A Port Harcourt based seafarer, Onmonya Udeh, has appealed to the Federal Government to equip the Nigerian Navy and the Marine Police to tackle piracy in the nation’s waterways.

Udeh lamented that pirates were armed with more sophisticated weapons than the Navy and the Marine police, thereby posing serious threats to the lives of mariners and passengers.

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Source: thetidenewsonline.com

Seoul exploring own way to contribute security in Hormuz

By Jung Da-min

Presidential Chief of Staff Noh Young-min said Thursday that the government could seek its own way to protect the lives and properties of Koreans in the Strait of Hormuz rather than participating in a U.S.-led naval coalition policing the region.

His remarks came amid Washington’s increasing pressure on Seoul to participate in the International Maritime Security Construct (IMSC), a coalition of countries including the United States, Saudi Arabia, the U.K. and Bahrain sending naval units to the area to safeguard navigation.

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Source: koreatimes.co.kr

Reps Plan Security Summits On Ports

The House of Representatives Committee on Ports and Harbours says it will soon organise a nationwide security summit to tackle acts of insecurity in the nation’s ports.

The committee also decried the spate of piracy in the nation’s waterways and abduction of crew members of vessels coming to Eastern ports.

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Source: thetidenewsonline.com

New Red Sea alliance borne out of urgent necessity

Albadr Alshateri

The Red Sea has been attracting an increasing amount of attention from Gulf states in recent years. Saudi Arabia and the UAE offered $3 billion in aid to Sudan following the ouster of former dictator Omar Al Bashir, and some states have intervened as part of the Combined Task Force off the coast of Somalia to help combat piracy in the area. Also just last week, this trend culminated in the creation of a special council for Arab and African nations bordering the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, at a conference held in Riyadh this month.

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Source: thenational.ae

Military leaders from four littoral states meet to tackle spike in robberies in Singapore Strait

Lim Min Zhang

SINGAPORE – Senior military leaders from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia will meet on Wednesday (Jan 15) to discuss ways to combat the recent spike in sea robberies in the Singapore Strait.

The two-day 14th Malacca Straits Patrol Joint Coordinating Committee Meeting, hosted by the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), will be co-chaired by representatives of the four littoral states, the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) said in a statement on Wednesday.

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Source: straitstimes.com

ReCAAP issues annual piracy report

A total of 82 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships (comprising 71 actual incidents and 11 attempted incidents) were reported in Asia in 2019. This accounts for a 8% increase in the total number of incidents and a 15% increase in the actual incidents reported in 2019 compared to 2018. In 2018, 76 incidents (comprising 62 actual incidents and 14 attempted incidents) were reported. Majority of the incidents reported in 2019 were armed robbery against ships. Of the 82 incidents reported in 2019, two were incidents of piracy, and 80 were incidents of armed robbery against ships.

There was improvement at some ports and anchorages in Asia in 2019 compared to 2018. The improvement occurred in Bangladesh and Indonesia. In Bangladesh, no incident was reported at its ports and anchorages in 2019 compared to 11 incidents in 2018. In Indonesia, the number of incidents at its ports and anchorages decreased to 23 incidents in 2019 from 27 incidents in 2018.

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Source: recaap.org

MarsecNews Note: To get the full picture of global piracy, figures from both the ReCAAP and IMB need to be collated along with those from UKMTO and other agencies.