Info
The following is a paper I wrote for PLS 241, and if I remember correctly, I wrote it on the day of Easter after family festivities. Yeesh. I’m not entirely sure of the why of the format, but I’m assuming it was mandated by the assignment instructions.
Thesis
Thesis: Piracy has long been a threat to international trade and remains an issue today; countering it requires both more modern and time-tested methods as well as strong international partnerships.
Reasons in support of thesis:
1. Piracy is an important problem because it harms citizens and the economy.
2. The methods used to deal with piracy, almost from the beginning of the country, are still useful today in handling the threat of piracy.
3. Piracy is an excellent place to involve international partners.
Body
Piracy has long been a threat to international trade and remains an issue today; countering it requires both more modern and time-tested methods as well as strong international partnerships.
Naval shipping accounts for an enormous amount of trade across the world in both international and domestic sectors. Making up a plurality of the value of US exports and imports and a significant majority of the total mass of international shipping, transport over water is a key part of the US economy (“Freight Facts”). Threats to shipping can come in a wide variety of forms and oftentimes individual ships are not able or ready to defend themselves from attack. One such form is piracy.
In international law, piracy is defined as only occurring when private actors pursue private ends in hijacking or plundering vessels or aircraft (Swartz 10). This definition is very narrow and covers far less than a lay understanding of the term would. This paper will be focused primarily on this use of piracy, but the term’s broader uses regarding privateers and terrorists will also be touched on, and most of the prescriptions will be relevant to both topics.
In the United States, the Congress’ authority to handle pirates comes directly from the US Constitution. Article 1, section 8 states, in part, that:
“The Congress shall have the Power … To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offenses against the Law of Nations” (USA 6).
This power has been exercised by Congress and the US from almost the beginning of the country’s history. The first notable exercise of this power was in the Quasi-War, where the Navy effectively dealt with French depredations, sinking ships and attacking pirate bases (Swartz 4). Soon after, the US Navy under Jefferson faced the North African Barbary States who were extorting the US and most European countries for tribute in a protection racket draining an enormous amount of wealth from American coffers in several battles that tested the relatively new US Navy and Marines. One such battle in Tripoli is even referenced in the iconic Marine Corp anthem (Kilmeade and Yaeger 203). More recently, the Navy has had a significant role in handling the Somali pirates whose presence greatly increased in the late 2000s (Kuzmick 3).
Piracy is a threat to all nations, and opposition to the practice is a unifying force. The various anti-piracy coalitions that the US participates in are incredibly varied. To take one example, Combined Task Force 151, which was formed in response to the rise in Somali piracy, has been led by a wide variety of countries including Bahrain, Brazil, Denmark, and the United States (“CTF 151”). This task force was formed because of scale of kidnapping, death, and ransoming that was occurring at the hands of the pirates. Precipitating its formation was a rise not only in loss of cargoes, but also increases in deaths and assaults of crew and passengers (Chalk 14). Eliminating threats to citizens and economic prosperity is one of the main goals of sovereign nations and the private and indiscriminate nature of piracy makes it an easy issue to unify around.
The definition of piracy is also a broadly agreed upon subject, and even though the United States has not signed the “United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,” the provisions regarding piracy have been endorsed of by multiple US Chiefs of Naval Operations (Swartz 10). Piracy is an international crime. International cooperation improves US standing and helps to prevent the scourge of piracy.
The military approach to dealing with piracy, patrols and escorts, has also been complemented in recent years with defensive measures and best practices for merchant vessels themselves, as well as more advanced early detection systems which provide ships with crucial time to prepare and call for help. Various advanced detection and scanning systems exist including systems that use Passive Microwave Remote Sensing and Long Range Acoustic Device technology to detect and assess potential threats at safe distances (“Studies”). Best Management Practices have also been promulgated to great effect (Kuzmick 6). Such practices encourage threat assessment and specific defensive measures, including hardening specific areas of the ship like the bridge, employing razor wire protections around the outside of the vessel, and hiring security personnel (BIMCO et al. 14–19). These more modern defense and detection systems combined with anti-piracy naval operations and attacks on pirate bases are effective in dealing with the threat of piracy.
The actual stopping of pirate forces, aside from hindering them at the stage of attack should be a primary goal when dealing with piracy. The various ways to deal with bands of pirates are not equally effective. Killing pirate leaders has been notably ineffective, while destroying the pirate base of operations has been the most consistent and effective method of stopping piracy that has been attempted (Swartz 1). Thus, to effectively stop piracy, pure naval operations are not sufficient. Attacks on inland pirate bases and their stores of weapons and manpower are necessary (Swartz 1). Naval ships that are built for battle with other ships of their class are also of limited utility. Such ships are unable to pursue pirates down smaller channels and can lack maneuverability. To truly deal with pirates effectively, purpose-built boats are necessary.
Using techniques from the past like naval patrols, more modern innovations like razor wire, and strong international coalitions provide the most effective defense against piracy. The threat of piracy, while a grave concern of mariners everywhere, can be successfully curtailed given wise international politics and smart application of forces.
References
BIMCO, et al. Best Management Practices to Deter Piracy and Enhance Maritime Security in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea. Version 5, Witherby Publishing Group Ltd, 2018, https://www.ocimf.org/doclink/bmp5-best-management-practices-to-deter-piracy-and-enhance-maritime-security-in-the-red-sea-gulf-of-aden-indian-ocean-and-arabian-sea-1/.
Chalk, Peter. “Piracy.” The Maritime Dimension of International Security, 1st ed., RAND Corporation, 2008, pp. 5–18. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/mg697af.10.
“CTF 151: Counter-Piracy.” Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), 17 Sept. 2010, https://combinedmaritimeforces.com/ctf-151-counter-piracy/.
“Freight Facts and Figures.” Bureau of Transportation Statistics, 2021, https://www.bts.gov/browse-statistical-products-and-data/freight-facts-and-figures/us-international-freight-trade.
Kilmeade, Brian, and Don Yaeger. Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War That Changed American History. Sentinel, 2015.
Kuzmick, Joseph. Statement of Rear Admiral Joseph W. Kuzmick. https://allhands.navy.mil/Portals/1/features/pages/antipiracy/doc/testimony.pdf. US House of Representatives.
Studies, The Hague Centre for Strategic. Maritime Piracy. Hague Centre for Strategic Studies, 2008. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep12588.
Swartz, Peter. Piracy and the US Navy. Historical Paper, CNA, 16 Feb. 2006, https://www.cna.org/reports/2021/08/Piracy-and-the-US-Navy.pdf.
USA. The Constitution of the United States: With Index, and the Declaration of Independence. Twenty-Sixth Edition, Joint Committee on Printing, 2019.