Distinct Anti-Piracy Missions
Help Secure Commercial Navigation
in the Gulf of Aden and Western Indian Ocean

In the past decade, different naval missions have extended their mandates and responsibilities in the Western Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden and Southern Red Sea with specific goals in mind: the fight against piracy and illicit activities that can seriously disrupt the flow of major maritime routes, responsible for connecting the Indian Ocean to the Red Sea and ultimately the Mediterranean. This piece will cover the objectives of two of these missions, namely the European Naval mission EUNAVFOR Somalia (Operation Atalanta) and Combined Taskforce 151 (CTF 151), which is part of the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), a multinational naval coalition under the United States Fifth Fleet's command (based in Manama, Bahrain). The goal is to understand their main differences and whether they are effective given their apparent overlapping of areas and activities.

Operation Atalanta, the very first European Union naval mission, was approved in 2008 under Joint Action 2008/851/CFSP and follows a broad mandate. Its goals range from anti-piracy to securing the navigation of World Food Programme (WFP) vessels that deliver much needed aid to displaced persons victims of the instability in Somalia. Moreover, the European mission also tackles the trafficking of weapons and charcoal, the trafficking of human beings, illegal fishing activities and drug trafficking. Until March 2022, it was allowed to enter Somali territorial waters (up to 12 nautical miles off the coast's baseline) in order to carry out these objectives. Nonetheless, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has decided not to extend resolution 2608 (2021) in part due to resistance of Somali political forces who disagree on the continuation of the mission's activities in their territorial waters. Despite this new limitation, EUNAVFOR Somalia has released a statement reinforcing its continued commitment in fighting piracy in the international waters of the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden.

CTF 151, approved in 2009, has similar goals, though more limited in scope. For instance, its main goal is to disrupt piracy off the coast of Somalia, Gulf of Aden and Southern Red Sea besides carrying out search and rescue operations when needed. In other words, it patrols similar areas, but carries out more limited interception activities. Its responsibilities do not include patrolling Somalia's territorial waters, as was the case for Operation Atalanta until March 2022. Nevertheless, both missions act closely by coordinating their steps in order to avoid the overlapping of monitoring and interdiction activities, aiming thus at using their naval and aerial resources to their fullest effectiveness. 

The success of this cooperation and commitment is reflected in the numbers related to pirate attacks in the region. According to the data cited on Operation Atalanta´s official site, the number of pirate attacks went from 212 in 2011 to 0 in 2020. 

All in all, naval missions such as Operation Atalanta and CTF 151 have helped to secure commercial navigation in a contentious region, reinforcing the commitment to international peace and security. Understanding their differences, helps us to better grasp the extent of the challenges they face and the importance of maintaining ongoing effective measures to fight piracy off the Coast of Somalia and Gulf of Aden.

 

15 March 2022