Tuesday
May052009
DOD Official: Sailors Should Fight Somali Pirates Themselves
By Michael Ruhl, University of New Mexico - Talk Radio News Service
The most effective way to deal with piracy off of the Somali coast is for the sailors to defend themselves, according to a Defense Department representative testifying to the Senate Armed Services Committee today.
Michele Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, said that of the recent pirate attacks in Somalia the most effective means of fending off the pirates came from actions taken by the crews themselves.
“The single most effective short-term response to piracy will be working with merchant shipping lines to ensure that vessels in the region take appropriate security measures themselves,” Flournoy said. She continued that it is not possible for the U.S. military to prevent or intervene in every pirate attack, but if crews take appropriate measures, “the vast majority of pirate attacks can be thwarted without any need for military intervention.”
There were 122 attempted pirate attacks in 2008, of which only 42 resulted in crewmembers becoming captured. Of the unsuccessful attacks, 78 percent of them were stopped by the crews actions, with the others being stopped by military intervention, according to Flournoy.
Flournoy divided crew countermeasures into two categories: passive and active defense measures. Passive measures are those which don’t necessarily require direct confrontation with the pirates, and can include physical obstructions to boarding points, avoiding high-risk waters, creating fortified “safe rooms” in the ship, posting lookouts at all times, and maintaining contact with maritime security forces. Active defense measures can include using fire hoses and small arms to repel pirates and a military presence on the boat. Both of these defensive measures are important for crews to talk to defend themselves, Flournoy said.
She believes that the complexity of this situation necessitates a multifaceted approach, which is why the aforementioned measures should be combined with greater military patrols and economic development. Additionally, the Defense Department would like to see more states willing to prosecute the pirates. Presently, Kenya is one of the only nations to actually place Somali pirates on trial.
According to Flournoy, since August 2008 36 pirate vessels have been destroyed or confiscated, small arms have been seized, and 146 pirates have been turned over to law enforcement officers.
The most effective way to deal with piracy off of the Somali coast is for the sailors to defend themselves, according to a Defense Department representative testifying to the Senate Armed Services Committee today.
Michele Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, said that of the recent pirate attacks in Somalia the most effective means of fending off the pirates came from actions taken by the crews themselves.
“The single most effective short-term response to piracy will be working with merchant shipping lines to ensure that vessels in the region take appropriate security measures themselves,” Flournoy said. She continued that it is not possible for the U.S. military to prevent or intervene in every pirate attack, but if crews take appropriate measures, “the vast majority of pirate attacks can be thwarted without any need for military intervention.”
There were 122 attempted pirate attacks in 2008, of which only 42 resulted in crewmembers becoming captured. Of the unsuccessful attacks, 78 percent of them were stopped by the crews actions, with the others being stopped by military intervention, according to Flournoy.
Flournoy divided crew countermeasures into two categories: passive and active defense measures. Passive measures are those which don’t necessarily require direct confrontation with the pirates, and can include physical obstructions to boarding points, avoiding high-risk waters, creating fortified “safe rooms” in the ship, posting lookouts at all times, and maintaining contact with maritime security forces. Active defense measures can include using fire hoses and small arms to repel pirates and a military presence on the boat. Both of these defensive measures are important for crews to talk to defend themselves, Flournoy said.
She believes that the complexity of this situation necessitates a multifaceted approach, which is why the aforementioned measures should be combined with greater military patrols and economic development. Additionally, the Defense Department would like to see more states willing to prosecute the pirates. Presently, Kenya is one of the only nations to actually place Somali pirates on trial.
According to Flournoy, since August 2008 36 pirate vessels have been destroyed or confiscated, small arms have been seized, and 146 pirates have been turned over to law enforcement officers.
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2008, 2009, Defense department, Kenya, Michael Ruhl, Michele Flournoy, Piracy, Ruhl, Senate Armed Services, Somalia, department of defense, economic development, economy, law, legal, michael, michael t ruhl, michaeltruhl, military, pirate, pirates, senate, senate armed services committee in Congress, Frontpage 1, News/Commentary
2008, 2009, Defense department, Kenya, Michael Ruhl, Michele Flournoy, Piracy, Ruhl, Senate Armed Services, Somalia, department of defense, economic development, economy, law, legal, michael, michael t ruhl, michaeltruhl, military, pirate, pirates, senate, senate armed services committee in Congress, Frontpage 1, News/Commentary
DOD Says If Iraqi Elections Go Smooth, Troops Come Home And Scrap Equipment Stays There
The Department of Defense Undersecretary for policy Michele Flournoy met with Congressmen for the second time in the past few months Wednesday, addressing some of the changes Iraq will face if U.S. troops are able to successfully follow President Obama's recently reiterated commitment to withdraw combat troops from Iraq by 2012.
Flournoy said that the January presidential election in Iraq looks promising, but conceded that if the plans don't go forward, future troop withdrawals aren't concrete.
"The drawdown plan that we have is conditions-based and it creates multiple decision points for reevaluating and if necessary, changing our plans, based on developments on the ground," Flournoy said during a hearing with the House Armed Services Committee.
She added that Iraq's Council of Representatives still has, in the DOD's opinion, another week or two to agree on an elections law before the January elections will be considered jeopardized. However, if the planned elections do run smoothly in Iraq, the DOD has plans to sell "scrap" military equipment to the Iraqi Security Forces.
Blue Dog Coalition member U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor (D-Miss.) expressed concerns about the plan, saying after Hurricane Katrina, his state had a "desperate need for generators" and warned that "something like Katrina is going to happen again, whether it's man-made, or the hand of God."
Taylor challenged the panel of witnesses, asking "to what extent are you taking those things that the military says they don't need anymore and putting them on line... and to what extent are you making those things available to cities, states, and counties?"
Flournoy and Alan Estevez, Acting Deputy Defense Undersecretary for Logistics and Material Readiness, said the goods sold to the ISF would be screened for U.S. need, to which Estevez responded: "the Department, in coordination with the General Services Administration, which is responsible for the transfer of excess property to state and local entities, has established a process that would allow state and local entities the opportunity to screen excess property in Iraq, prior to it being transferred to the Iraqi government."
Estevez added that the property is likely unusable by the states because of their foreign volt specifications but Taylor requested access to the list anyway.