According to a recent paper prepared and presented on March 13, 2012 to the US Chamber of Commerce by the Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, US Department of State, Andrew J. Shapiro, “We are seeing signs that combined efforts by the international community are having a positive effect. The numbers demonstrate this. In 2011, even though the number of pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia increased slightly over 2010, the number of successful pirate attacks fell by nearly half. There has also been a significant drop in the numbers of ships and crew held hostage. In January 2011, pirates held 31 ships and 710 hostages. In early March of 2012 pirates held 8 ships and 213 hostages. This is still too many, but it is clear that progress is being made. However, the problem of piracy is one that can’t simply be solved by national governments. Therefore, we have also supported industry’s use of additional measures to ensure their security – such as the employment of armed security teams. To date, not a single ship with Privately Contracted Armed Security Personnel aboard has been pirated. Not a single one”.
13 March 2012: Paper Presented to the US Chamber of Commerce by the Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, US Department of State, Andrew J. Shapiro
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