On Sunday October 25th the Force Commander of the European Union Naval Force Somalia (EU NAVFOR), Commodore Bindt, met with his Japanese counterpart, Commander of Escort Division Two (CCD2), Captain Arihara on board the Netherlands EU NAVFOR flagship HNLMS Evertsen in the Golf of Aden.
The meeting was held to mark the good cooperation between the two task forces and discuss developments and future plans to deter, disrupt and suppress piracy in the waters off Somalia.
The meeting offered an excellent opportunity for exchanging information between the different staffs and to share experiences on fighting piracy.
CCD2 provides anti-piracy escorts for convoys in the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor, the busy shipping lane in the Gulf of Aden between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Recently Japan offered to advertise details of its convoy on the MSCHOA website although, in principle, other nationally flagged ships can join the preplanned convoys when complying with advertised minimum requirements.
During the last few months the Japanese Maritime Patrol Aircraft, operating from Djibouti, proved to be highly effective in detecting suspicious skiffs in an early stage, providing the naval units in the area the opportunity to react quickly and to deter pirates before an act of piracy was committed.
Established in December 2008, EU NAVFOR is an European Union Task Force established to protect vessels of the ‘World Food Program (WFP)’ delivering food aid to displaced persons in Somalia, to protect vulnerable shipping through the Gulf of Aden and off the Somali coast and to prevent, deter and repress acts of piracy and armed robbery off the Somali coast, including arrest.
The meeting was held to mark the good cooperation between the two task forces and discuss developments and future plans to deter, disrupt and suppress piracy in the waters off Somalia.
The meeting offered an excellent opportunity for exchanging information between the different staffs and to share experiences on fighting piracy.
CCD2 provides anti-piracy escorts for convoys in the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor, the busy shipping lane in the Gulf of Aden between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Recently Japan offered to advertise details of its convoy on the MSCHOA website although, in principle, other nationally flagged ships can join the preplanned convoys when complying with advertised minimum requirements.
During the last few months the Japanese Maritime Patrol Aircraft, operating from Djibouti, proved to be highly effective in detecting suspicious skiffs in an early stage, providing the naval units in the area the opportunity to react quickly and to deter pirates before an act of piracy was committed.
Established in December 2008, EU NAVFOR is an European Union Task Force established to protect vessels of the ‘World Food Program (WFP)’ delivering food aid to displaced persons in Somalia, to protect vulnerable shipping through the Gulf of Aden and off the Somali coast and to prevent, deter and repress acts of piracy and armed robbery off the Somali coast, including arrest.