Originally posted by ParShooterBut that would involve eliminating entire Somalian villages to take out a few pirates. That strategy hasn't proven particularly successful in Afghanistan except in boosting militancy amongst Afghans.
And the best way to deal with pirates is to attack them on land, not at sea.
Originally posted by no1marauderWe'll have to see how the war pans out. Al-Shabaab should make for interesting negotiating partners.
There was a government in place. Unfortunately, it was too Islamic for the West. There is no likelihood that a government will come to power in Somalia that is pro-Western. So the West needs to adjust its thinking as regards the acceptability of an Islamic government which might be willing to crack down on the piracy as part of a treaty.
Originally posted by no1marauderWhat about allowing merchant vessels to carry some sort of marines? Prohibitively expensive, no doubt ...
There is no effective government in Somalia today (thanks largely to Western meddling). Therefore, the pirates are just criminal gangs. Absent some sort of convoy system (which is hardly practicable given the vast amounts of shipping that goes through the area), there is little that military operations can do to end this type of piracy.
Originally posted by Bosse de NageThe best way to deal with pirates is to attack them at sea. There will be no ambiguity as to what the intentions are of the people on the boat, and secondly, there wouldn't be any case for "mistaken identity" or "murdering civilians". If you know right from wrong, you wouldn't have been on the boat in the first place.
But that would involve eliminating entire Somalian villages to take out a few pirates. That strategy hasn't proven particularly successful in Afghanistan except in boosting militancy amongst Afghans.
Attack them on land and I promise you that the dead pirate will instantly become an "innocent civilian".
Last I checked, we didn't do too well attacking anyone in Somalia.
Originally posted by Bosse de NageCertainly more expensive than paying a very occasional ransom. To be effective, you'd probably have to deploy more than a couple of trained guards (the pirates come in armed groups) and the cost of say, 5-10, ex-military guys on every merchant ship for the duration of a voyage would be considerable. Another potential problem is that you'd have to have guns, ammunition and explosives stored on the ship; this might be problematic on a ship carrying certain cargo (like an oil tanker) because of the possibility of accident.
What about allowing merchant vessels to carry some sort of marines? Prohibitively expensive, no doubt ...
Originally posted by Scotty70That seems to be the strategy now being pursued by the EU naval force in the region. At least it gives the Euros' navies something constructive to do.
The best way to deal with pirates is to attack them at sea. There will be no ambiguity as to what the intentions are of the people on the boat, and secondly, there wouldn't be any case for "mistaken identity" or "murdering civilians". If you know right from wrong, you wouldn't have been on the boat in the first place.
Attack them on land and I promise yo ...[text shortened]... nocent civilian".
Last I checked, we didn't do too well attacking anyone in Somalia.