India Shows The Way

IBD Editorials ^ | November 19, 2008

[Kaslin]

Piracy: India, from whose Hindi language we get the word "thug," knows how to handle them. Its navy blew away two Somali pirate ships in a week, sending a message in the only language thugs understand. Kudos.

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The next Somali crew of pirates on a ship slinking through the Gulf of Aden looking for an easy ransom won't smile through its cutlasses if it spies an Indian-flagged ship. It will move the other way as fast as possible.

Tuesday, a pirate mother-ship crew aimed grenade launchers at an Indian naval frigate and tried to ram it. The Indian ship Tabar fired back, set the vessel on fire, and left it at the bottom of the sea. It was the second pirate ship India's navy had blown out of the water, another was taken out Nov. 11. There won't be many more.

India's clear response to the Somali pirates is the only one likely to prove effective. It contrasts sharply with the handwringing helplessness of other navies patrolling the area under a United Nations mandate. Their mission is proving ineffective, and the enemy is growing bolder. Since a Saudi supertanker was seized on Saturday, pirates have commandeered three more ships.

[Clint Williams]

India's clear response to the Somali pirates is the only one likely to prove effective. It contrasts sharply with the handwringing helplessness of other navies patrolling the area under a United Nations mandate.

Doh!

Maybe I should consider becoming Indian. They seem to have more spine than the West.

The only good pirate is the one feeding fishes at the bottom of the ocean. And that includes Johnny Depp.

[magslinger]

Note to Somali pirates: Don’t bring RPG’s to a CIWS fight.

[Paladin2]

"British Royal Navy Commodore Keith Winstanley, deputy commander of the Combined Maritime Forces in the Middle East, said he feared no amount of coalition forces would be sufficient to secure the 2.5 million sq nautical miles of the Gulf of Aden, let alone the Indian Ocean waters where the supertanker was seized. “The pirates will go somewhere we are not,” he said. “If we patrol the Gulf of Aden then they will go to Mogadishu. If we go to Mogadishu, they will go to the Gulf of Aden.”

Why not go both places at once? Why not destroy any and all boats on shore or arriving and departing the coasts along with any unknown boats on the open seas. Between satellites and AWACS it shouldn't be too difficult to locate all boats down to a 12 ft punt.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article5192674.ece

[Secret Agent Man]

And if I had sunk them, any pirates alive in the water would be shot at until dead. Always been the punishment for piracy, when applied correctly there are no repeat offenders.

[RedMonqey]

“If we patrol the Gulf of Aden then they will go to Mogadishu. If we go to Mogadishu, they will go to the Gulf of Aden.” British Royal Navy Commodore Keith Winstanley

Your ancestors in the British navy had no problem blowing away pirates when their ships had only wind, sail and black powder cannons. What they had was guts and determination.

You have nuclear power, cruise missiles and GPS.

Stop making excuses for having no Balls...

[PapaBear3625]

“The pirates will go somewhere we are not,” he said. “If we patrol the Gulf of Aden then they will go to Mogadishu. If we go to Mogadishu, they will go to the Gulf of Aden.”

The problem comes from trying to chase the pirates away, rather than simply blowing them away wherever they might be found.

A small craft full of men with guns and RPGs should be assumed to be a pirate vessel, and simply blown out of the water on sight.

[Eighth Square]

The UN is convening a committee to study America's suggestion that they adopt a plan to load boats with counselors who would cruise the area in an aggressive manner.

[AndyJackson]

The pirates will go somewhere we are not

Not if they are shredded by some CIWS that turns them into shark food.

[AndyJackson]

India's clear response to the Somali pirates is the only one likely to prove effective. It contrasts sharply with the handwringing helplessness of other navies patrolling the area under a United Nations mandate.

While I cheer on the Indians, it is heart wrenching to know that the Indians are feared while Old Glory is such a laughing stock that our hand wringing arugula boys serving in the place of fighting admirals ought to be running their befouled skivvies up the masthead instead.

[eyedigress]

Given the new line drawn by the pirates, International funding of contracts should be let to escort all majors and have the means to strike quickly. How quick is above my pay grade.

[John Locke]

The problem is the UN "rules of engagement", which essentially prohibit the use of force of any kind. It might hurt the pirates' feelings, after all.

That said, I also think Horatio Nelson or John Paul Jones would have known exactly what to do with pirates:

[rmlew]

Where are the Marines?
Finding ships is hard. Having Harriers bomb their bases and marines storm them is complicated, but damn effective.