Policy & Research Forum
July 14, 2009
Featuring:
Charles Dragonette
Senior Maritime Operations Analyst, Office of Naval Intelligence
Mark Kimmitt
Former Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs
Brigadier General, US Army (Retired)
Martin Murphy
Senior Fellow, Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments
David Shinn
Former Ambassador to Ethiopia
Adjunct Professor, Elliott School of International Affairs
Moderated by:
Frank Cilluffo
Director, HSPI
Stephen Carmel
HSPI Senior Fellow
Senior Vice President, Maersk Line, Limited
On July 14, 2009, HSPI held a forum to discuss East African piracy. The event featured military, diplomatic, and shipping industry experts in a discussion designed to separate fact from hyperbole, assess the true nature of the challenge posed by East African pirates, and illuminate potential policy responses. The forum featured: Charles Dragonette, Senior Maritime Operations Analyst, Office of Naval Intelligence; Mark Kimmitt, retired Brigadier General and former Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs; Martin Murphy, Senior Fellow, Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments; and David Shinn, former Ambassador to Ethiopia. It was moderated by Frank Cilluffo, Director, Homeland Security Policy Institute; and Stephen Carmel, HSPI Senior Fellow, and Senior Vice President, Maersk Line, Limited.
Mr. Cilluffo opened the event noting that the issue of East African piracy is not “fully recognized for its many moving parts” nor is it something likely to be effectively addressed through an “anti-piracy approach alone.” Three specific issues dominated the discussion – Somalia’s status as a failed state, the economic costs and magnitude of the threat posed by East African pirates, and the need to better conceptualize and articulate this issue’s connection to US national interests.
Each of these issues elicited spirited debate. Ambassador Shinn noted that “the failed state of Somalia is the basic reason you have a problem with piracy.” However, General Kimmitt argued, “we can’t wait the twenty years it would take to fix Somalia as a country.” Concerning the magnitude of the threat, Dr. Murphy posited that the effect on international trade was small. “Yes, financial charges for ships transiting risk areas are somewhat higher, but compared to the volume of international trade, the losses, and the direct losses to ransom payments, amount to little more than a rounding error,” said Murphy. For the panelists, this did not mean the US and the international community should forgo a response. In attempting to devise a policy response, Mr. Carmel stated that the “real question is one of what are our national interests?” Carmel suggested that based on a pure cost-benefit analysis, the US response had thus far been exaggerated – “attacks on the Alabama did not change the facts, simply US perceptions of the problem.”
Whether or not linkages exist between Somali-based pirates and Islamist groups such as al Shabaab divided the expert panel more so than any other topic. Citing an October 2008 study, Ambassador Shinn expressed concern about the potential that such linkages (such as pirates supplying weapons to Islamists), already present, may increase. The other panelists remained skeptical. For his part, Mr. Cilluffo warned of the need to be mindful of the role played by strategic communications and to watch for the trigger points that might push a nexus between pirates and Islamists.
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Event Resources
East African Piracy, thrust into American political discourse by the dramatic rescue of merchant Captain Richard Phillips, represents a small but growing challenge to the United States and larger international community. Any policy response should be crafted, considered, and implemented with a sober understanding of Somali based piracy.
On July 14, 2009, HSPI will host a panel discussion concerning The Perils of East African Piracy. HSPI recommends the following resources.
In defining & measuring East African Piracy:
Flournoy, Michèle & James Winnefeld. (2009) Testimony before the US Senate Armed Services Committee - 05 May 2009. Found at http://armed-services.senate.gov/statemnt/2009/May/Flournoy-Winnefeld%2005-05-09.pdf.
“Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships.” (2003) Annual Report. International Chamber of Commerce - International Maritime Bureau. p. 3
“Pirate attacks off Somalia already surpass 2008 figures.” (2009) International Chamber of Commerce - Commercial Crime Services. Found at http://www.icc-ccs.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=352:pirate-attacks-off-somalia-already-surpass-2008-figures&catid=60:news&Itemid=51
Patch, John. (2008) “The Overstated Threat.” Proceedings Magazine. Volume 134, Issue 12.
Article 101, UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982) United Nations.
“Pirate Attack Density in the Gulf of Aden (2008)” UNOSAT. Found at http://unosat.web.cern.ch/unosat/asp/prod_free.asp?id=28
“Reported Incidents of Somali Pirate Attacks and Hijackings in the Gulf of Aden for 2008.” (2009) UNOSAT. Found at http://unosat.web.cern.ch/unosat/asp/prod_free.asp?id=28
United States Code, Title 18 § 2280 (a)(1)(A)
In examining the motivations and the operational environment:
Abdinur, Mustafa Haji. (2009) “Life in Somalia’s pirate army.” Agence France-Presse. Found at http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=1549233.
Adow, Mohammed. (2009) “The pirate kings of Puntland.” Al-Jazeera. Found at http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2009/06/2009614125245860630.html.
“UN envoy decries illegal fishing, waste dumping off Somalia.” (2008) Agence France-Presse. Found at http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gVV_gQDsp1m8v7nPcumVc5McYV-Q.
Baldauf, Scott. (2008) “Who are Somalia’s pirates?” The Christian Science Monitor. Found at http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1120/p25s22-woaf.html.
“World only cares about pirates.” (2008) BBC. Found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7740417.stm.
Bengali, Shashank. (2009) “An interview with a jailed Somali pirate leader.” The Christian Science Monitor. Found at http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0503/p06s12-woaf.html.
“Somalia” The World Factbook. (2009) CIA. Found at https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/SO.html.
Gilpin, Raymond. (2009) “Counting the Costs of Somali Piracy.” United States Institute of Peace. p. 7
Harper, Mary. (2008) “Life in Somalia’s pirate town.” BBC. Found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7623329.stm.
Knaup, Horand. (2008) “The Poor Fisherman of Somalia.” Der Spiegel. Found at http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,594457,00.html.
To review the role played by the international community and regional actors:
“Country profile: Somalia.” (2009) BBC. Found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/country_profiles/1072592.stm.
Knott, John. (2009) “Clan Rivalry, Military Conflict, and the Financial and Human Costs of Piracy.” Holman Fenwick Willan. Found at http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=76272&login=true&nogo=1.
Schaeffer, Nathan. (2009) “Combined Maritime Forces Works with International Navies to Counter Piracy.” Press Release, US 5th Fleet. Found at http://www.cusnc.navy.mil/articles/2009/089.html.
Tharoor, Ishaan. (2009) “How Somalia’s Fisherman Became Pirates.” Time. Found at http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1892376,00.html.
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