Monthly Archives: May 2014

UGS Weekly Digest 19 – 25 May 2014

  May 29, 2014 ,
Indian Ocean Piracy Updates

Indian Ocean MARSEC Updates By Ilias Papadopoulos Master in International Relations &    Strategic Studies             This last week was a busy one for maritime security in the Indian Ocean, with three incidents taking place. While these events did not escalate to a full scale engagement they remind us that while severely hampered, piracy business in Aden is still around.             To take events from the top, in 20/05 at 07.47 a vessel was approached by four skiffs that circled around it for 20-30 minutes. The skiffs seemed to bear no arms, but nevertheless the on board security team showed its weapons as the rules of engagement dictate and the skiffs broke contact. Further to that, 20 minutes after the first … Continue reading

UGS Weekly Digest 12 – 18 May 2014

  May 21, 2014 ,
HMAS-Darwin-Seizes-132-Mln-of-Drugs-off-Somalia

Illicit Trade by al Shabaab Bringing Terrorism to the Indian Ocean By Ilias Papadopoulos Master in International Relations & Strategic Studies               In 15/05, an Australian Navy warship, HMAS Darwin, patrolling the coast of Somalia seized a total of 449kg of heroin ($123 mn value). This brought to the forefront again the ways that Somali terrorist groups, particularly al Shabaab, an al Qaeda offshoot, operating in southern Somalia acquire their financing.             Initially the goal of al Shabaab being strictly politico-religious forbade it from embarking in petty crime. Thus their source of financing until 2010 was from other states that either supported their radical cause (e.g. Saudi Arabia), or that wanted to destabilize the targets of the terrorist group … Continue reading

UGS Weekly Digest 05 – 11 May 2014

  May 14, 2014 ,
ISO 28000 with UKAS Blue

ISO/PAS 28007 The Accreditation for Maritime Security Companies By Ilias Papadopoulos Master in International Relations & Strategic Studies           The year 2008 saw the formation of a new trend in maritime commerce, piracy. The phenomenon of course was not unheard of, but at that time it became so menacing that shipping companies had to acknowledge it and took steps to protect their assets and interests. At first the states tried to play the role of the protector against maritime crime but the measure soon proved ineffective, both financially and legally. Meanwhile the reality remained unchanged, and demand of security from the ship owning companies and the charterers, soon produced supply from the private sector.             Thus a whole new … Continue reading

UGS Weekly Digest 28 Apr – 04 May 2014

  May 5, 2014 ,
SP BRUSSELS attack

By Ilias Papadopoulos Master in International Relations & Strategic Studies             This past week bore a particular interest for MARSEC as it recorded the first killing of a seafarer by piracy for 2014 in West Africa. Particularly on 29/04, SP Brussels while transiting from Port Harcourt to Lagos was attacked by two armed pirates. The ship’s master raised the alarm and the crew mustered in the citadel. What followed was an exchange of fire between the on board security team and the pirates, that resulted in the death of the later. After the situation ended and the crew left the citadel, it found the vessel’s Chief Engineer dead and the third officer wounded. Both men were hit in the exchange … Continue reading