States participating in the Djibouti Code of Conduct have backed plans for a joint regional counter-piracy task force in the Gulf of Aden and western Indian Ocean as four hijacked merchant ships remain held near Somalia, according to the Djibouti Code of Conduct.
The proposed Combined DCoC Counter-Piracy Task Force would allow willing member states to conduct coordinated maritime operations, with Working Group 3 tasked with developing its mandate, geographical scope, composition, operating arrangements and resource requirements.
The initiative was considered by the DCoC Steering Committee on 29 July and by National Focal Points on 5 August, when states agreed in principle on the need for a regional response.
A WG3 workshop in Mombasa, Kenya, from 7 to 9 September is due to develop recommendations for the task force. Its final structure, funding and operational arrangements have not yet been agreed.
One option under consideration is the deployment of “sea-riders”, with officers from coastal states embarking on participating naval vessels.
WG3 chairman Brigadier Mohamed S. Shemote of the Kenya Navy said Kenya was willing to contribute naval assets and other operational capabilities for coordinated patrols.
The Steering Committee also proposed approaching Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Kenya about maintaining patrols in high-risk areas.
The planned force is intended to complement Combined Maritime Forces’ Combined Task Force 151 and the European Union’s Operation Atalanta rather than duplicate their operations. Legal arrangements for transferring piracy suspects to jurisdictions able to prosecute them are also under consideration.
As of 29 July, four hijacked merchant vessels were identified as being held near Somalia’s northern coast: Palau-flagged tanker Honour 25, Saint Kitts and Nevis-flagged Sward, Togo-flagged tanker Eureka and Tanzania-flagged tanker Asana.
The Djibouti Code of Conduct was adopted in 2009 as a regional framework to combat piracy and armed robbery at sea. Its 2017 Jeddah Amendment expanded the framework to cover other maritime security threats. The DCoC brings together 22 coastal and island states, 19 of which are signatories to the amendment.