The Pirate Fighting Fad

Fighting Somali piracy is beginning to remind me of grade school, it has almost become a fad that catches on and everyone wants to be part of it. Not a bad thing, but an interesting dynamic to it nonetheless. Next up: Australia.

"There is also the possibility of perhaps going further and getting involved in some of the important counter-piracy work that is coming on in the north Indian Ocean," he told sailors aboard the Anzac class frigate HMAS Parramatta last week.

"That is something we will be looking at quite carefully in the months ahead, developing a proposal for government's consideration."

Australian Strategic Policy Unit research director Anthony Bergin said yesterday there were strong arguments for joining the anti-piracy operations.

"I guess the point I would make is that at a political level its useful for Australia to be contributing to maritime security in the Indian ocean. It's obviously part of our strategic interest,'' he said.

The article is actually about the deployment of HMAS Warramunga (FFH 152) to the Gulf to participate in Combined Task Force (CTF) 152. For those who aren't familiar, CTF-152 patrols the central and southern Persian Gulf as part of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.

Australia has maintained a naval commitment in the Gulf region since 9/11, although if they were to join CTF-151 to fight piracy, it is more likely the ship usually on patrol in the Gulf would move to the patrol area off the Horn of Africa instead, rather than sending a second ship. I'm guessing, a second ship forward would be an interesting commitment, mostly because there is a cost increase to naval operations at a time the government appears to want to cut defense costs.

At the end of the article, the question is raised about rules of engagement, and the question goes unanswered.