Posted:
August 18, 2009
In an editorial published in the Baltimore Sun earlier this month, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) renewed his call for the Department of Defense to provide embarked military security teams to U.S.-flagged vessels facing a high risk of attack by pirates while delivering U.S. government-impelled cargoes overseas.
Rep. Cummings, chairman of the House Subcommittee on U.S. Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, noted piracy in the region of the Horn of Africa remains a "vexing problem," and the "ultimate solution" would involve establishment of the rule of law in Somalia. "However, while initiatives are undertaken to support that crucial objective, American merchant mariners continue to sail in harm's way," he wrote.
Rep. Cummings, who has convened two hearings before the subcommittee to address the problem of international piracy, commended the cooperative efforts of the U.S. Navy, European Union, NATO and other allied forces in establishing a military presence in the Gulf of Aden aimed at deterring piracy. "I have no doubt our military would respond immediately if another U.S.-flagged vessel were attacked," he wrote. "However, the timeliness of their response could be hindered if military assets are far from the scene of an attack."
Citing Maritime Administration estimates, Rep. Cummings said about 54 U.S.-flagged vessels transit the Horn of Africa region over the course of a year. "Of these, about 40 will carry U.S.-government food-aid cargo, and 44 have the ability to carry U.S. military cargo. Only a handful of these vessels -- fewer than 10 in a three-month period -- are estimated to be at serious risk of attack due to their operating characteristics," he said.
"Providing embedded military security teams on those vessels truly at risk of a pirate attack would surely require far fewer resources than patrolling a million-square-mile area," Rep. Cummings said.
Rep. Cummings sponsored an amendment to defense authorization legislation that would require embarked military security teams onboard certain U.S.-flagged merchant vessels. The bill with his amendment was approved by the House of Representatives. Companion legislation in the Senate did not contain this provision and the differences between the House and Senate bills have yet to be reconciled.
Rep. Cummings noted his amendment is supported by maritime labor and U.S. ship owners. "As one union official said before my subcommittee: 'When a vessel flies the US. flag, it becomes an extension of the United States itself, regardless of where in the world the vessel is operating.' Surely, protecting U.S. citizens and property was the purpose for which our military forces were created," he wrote.
Rep. Cummings renews call for embarked military teams for U.S.-flagged vessels at high-risk of pirate attacks
In an editorial published in the Baltimore Sun earlier this month, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) renewed his call for the Department of Defense to provide embarked military security teams to U.S.-flagged vessels facing a high risk of attack by pirates while delivering U.S. government-impelled cargoes overseas.
Rep. Cummings, chairman of the House Subcommittee on U.S. Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, noted piracy in the region of the Horn of Africa remains a "vexing problem," and the "ultimate solution" would involve establishment of the rule of law in Somalia. "However, while initiatives are undertaken to support that crucial objective, American merchant mariners continue to sail in harm's way," he wrote.
Rep. Cummings, who has convened two hearings before the subcommittee to address the problem of international piracy, commended the cooperative efforts of the U.S. Navy, European Union, NATO and other allied forces in establishing a military presence in the Gulf of Aden aimed at deterring piracy. "I have no doubt our military would respond immediately if another U.S.-flagged vessel were attacked," he wrote. "However, the timeliness of their response could be hindered if military assets are far from the scene of an attack."
Citing Maritime Administration estimates, Rep. Cummings said about 54 U.S.-flagged vessels transit the Horn of Africa region over the course of a year. "Of these, about 40 will carry U.S.-government food-aid cargo, and 44 have the ability to carry U.S. military cargo. Only a handful of these vessels -- fewer than 10 in a three-month period -- are estimated to be at serious risk of attack due to their operating characteristics," he said.
"Providing embedded military security teams on those vessels truly at risk of a pirate attack would surely require far fewer resources than patrolling a million-square-mile area," Rep. Cummings said.
Rep. Cummings sponsored an amendment to defense authorization legislation that would require embarked military security teams onboard certain U.S.-flagged merchant vessels. The bill with his amendment was approved by the House of Representatives. Companion legislation in the Senate did not contain this provision and the differences between the House and Senate bills have yet to be reconciled.
Rep. Cummings noted his amendment is supported by maritime labor and U.S. ship owners. "As one union official said before my subcommittee: 'When a vessel flies the US. flag, it becomes an extension of the United States itself, regardless of where in the world the vessel is operating.' Surely, protecting U.S. citizens and property was the purpose for which our military forces were created," he wrote.