The Asian Shipowners Forum (ASF) is pushing for its counter-piracy proposal to be adopted by the United Nations (UN). The proposal would see armed military personnel, sponsored and managed by the UN, providing protection to merchant shipping in the pirates infested waters of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden, Seatrade Asia online reports. The proposal which would use floating bases was presented by the ASF at a UN working group in Washington DC on 28 February. “It is extremely urgent that the ASF proposal should be implemented as soon as possible as international shipping and trade, and most importantly of lives of the ships’ crews, are all at the mercy of these ruthless Somali pirates,” said Patrick Phoon, chairman of the ASF Safe Navigation and Environment Committee.
The proposal to use UN peacekeeping troops on floating bases was originally put to the UN last July by the Singapore Shipping Association (SSA), as first reported by Seatrade Asia Week.
The proposal to use UN peacekeeping troops on floating bases was originally put to the UN last July by the Singapore Shipping Association (SSA), as first reported by Seatrade Asia Week.