Russian Baltic Fleet warship visits Sri Lanka in anti-piracy deployment to Indian Ocean

Photo: PO Lee Blease/MOD via Wikipedia and OGL

Yaroslav Mudry guard ship will search for a notional enemy’s submarine with a Ka-27 helicopter’s take-off while the anti-terror squads on the ships and vessels will practice various scenarios of fighting pirates in the Indian Ocean

MOSCOW, March 4. /TASS/. The Baltic Fleet guard ship Yaroslav Mudry has made a planned business call at the port of Colombo in Sri Lanka in its anti-piracy deployment to the Indian Ocean, the Fleet’s press office reported on Wednesday.

“During its anchorage in Colombo, the crew will replenish fresh water, fuel and food supplies and technically inspect the ship. After completing its visit that will last through March 6, the Baltic Fleet guard ship will continue its anti-piracy watch in the Indian Ocean,” the press office said in a statement.

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Source: lankaweb.com

Operation launched to nab ‘lookouts’ targetting potential kidnap victims in ESSzone

KUNAK: Sabah police have cast a dragnet to detain the remaining ‘lookouts’ working hand-in-glove with kidnap-for-ransom groups (KFRG) in the Eastern Sabah Safety Zone (ESSzone).

Eastern Sabah Security Command (ESScom) Commander Datuk Hazani Ghazali said ‘Ops Gasak’ was launched to address the threats identified and which frequently occur in the hot spot areas of ESSzone.

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Source: theborneopost.com

Niger Delta: Smuggling, insecurity rise at private jetties

By Godfrey Bivbere

STAKEHOLDERS in the maritime industry have raised an alarm over high-level of smuggling through operations at the various private jetties scattered across the nation’s waterfront, even as they warmed about the security implication of an unregulated operations at these facilities.

Private jetties are licensed by the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA; the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA; and the National Inland Waterways Authority, NIWA, making effective regulation complicated.

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Source: vanguardngr.com

Maritime security concerns in Gulf of Aden

Tradewinds today (March 4th) reports that two tankers and a LNG carrier took evasive action off the coast of Yemen to avoid a ‘cluster of suspicious skiffs’. One vessel reported an approach to around 130m, but none of the vessels was attacked.

The news comes during a period of apparent increased suspicious activity in the region, with reports of approaches off Djibouti and in the IRTC in the Gulf of Aden at the end of February, as well as the beginning of March.

So far, no agency is identifying the incidents as piracy-related, given that no obvious piracy ‘tripwires’ were reported (these would include sightings of weapons, ladders and so on). The news will not please the shipping industry, given the peace enjoyed by seafarers off the Somali coast in recent years.

Despite the fall in piracy, the nature of threats in the region continues to evolve, with rebels allied to the al Houthi cause threatening Saudi coalition vessels in the Red Sea, and the news that naval mines have been seen in the region; one report recently suggested that three fishing vessel crew were killed by a mine in early February.

Two Filipino seafarers’ tale of surviving piracy

Yashika F. Torib

Nigerian pirates recently released eight seafarers held for almost a month in captivity under terrible conditions. Two of the hostages were Filipinos — one of whom was badly wounded and was almost left for dead. He gives details to The Manila Times regarding his desperate struggle for life and survival along with other foreign seafarers who were held captive in the jungles of Nigeria.

“I was unconscious and bloodied all over. No one knew where I was hit, but my mates knew for certain that I was barely clinging to life,” says John “Pope” Estinoco, an Ordinary Seaman for MT Happy Lady.

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Source: manilatimes.net

Criminal gangs take over Lagos – S/South waterways

By Godfrey Bivbere

COMMUNITY-based criminal gangs have taken over the nation’s waterways, from Lagos to the South-South part of the country, collecting tolls from all vessels sailing through that route.

Vanguard Maritime Report gathered that worst hit are barge owners from Warri axis who have been moving their barges to Lagos following the new trend of movement of cargo by barges from the ports to the private jetties.

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Source: vanguardngr.com

Indonesia approves plan to receive ScanEagle UAVs, helicopter upgrades from US

Ridzwan Rahmat, Singapore – Jane’s Navy International

The Indonesian House of Representatives’ commission on defence, intelligence, and foreign affairs (Komisi I) has approved a plan for the navy to receive up to 14 ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and upgrades for three Bell 412 helicopters from the US government.

The approval, which is part of an Indonesian government formality for foreign-sourced defence-related grants, was approved by the Komisi I on 26 February.

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Source: janes.com

Westmincom welcomes MNLF help to find abducted physician

ZAMBOANGA CITY — The Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) welcomed on Thursday the help of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) to rescue a physician seized by the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) bandits in Sulu.

Maj. Arvin John Encinas, Westmincom spokesperson, said they welcome any assistance from all stakeholders to rescue Dr. Daniel Moreno who was seized by ASG gunmen from his clinic in Barangay Walled City, Jolo, Sulu, on February 4.

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Source: pna.gov.ph

Coast Guard probes foreign ship for violating PH quarantine rule

DETAINED. The 'MV Harmony 6' is held at the anchorage area of Poro Point in La Union after its captain allegedly lied about their date of departure from China. Photo from Philippine Coast Guard

The Philippine Coast Guard says the captain of the Panama-flagged MV Harmony 6 declared that they left Changzhou, China, on February 10, when the ship’s real departure date was February 18. The ship arrived in La Union on February 23.

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is investigating a foreign cargo vessel for allegedly violating the Philippines’ 14-day quarantine rule amid the novel coronavirus outbreak.

PCG Spokesperson Commodore Armand Balilio said that PCG Commandant Admiral Joel Garcia ordered the investigation of the Panama-flagged MV Harmony 6, which arrived at Poro Point in La Union on February 23.

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Source: rappler.com

France declares Strait of Hormuz military mission fully operational

Joanne Stocker

France this week declared the military component to its maritime surveillance and security mission in the strategic Strait of Hormuz fully operational.

Operation Agenor, the military component of the European-led Maritime Situation Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz (EMASOH) initiative, was declared at full operational capacity in a ceremony at a French base in the Abu Dhabi on February 25, the Ministry for the Armed Forces said on Thursday.

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Source: thedefensepost.com