Navy task force to fight threat of Somali pirates

NORFOLK

With Russian and Chinese warships already working to deter pirate attacks on merchant ships off the Horn of Africa, the U.S. Navy on Thursday announced a new task force dedicated to combatting piracy in the region.

Combined Task Force 151 will be led by Rear Adm. Terence McKnight, a Norfolk native who also serves as commander of Expeditionary Strike Group Two, which is preparing to deploy from Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base to the Middle East.

The U.S.-led force is expected to include ships from other nations.

The San Antonio, a Norfolk-based amphibious transport dock, will serve as the command-and-control ship for the task force, according to a Navy official. Two aircraft and two other U.S. Navy ships - likely destroyers or cruisers - also will be assigned to the effort, which should be functioning by next week.

Another, similarly named group of military vessels from 20 nations, including the United States, has operated in Middle Eastern waters since late 2001. But Combined Task Force 150 focuses on weapons trafficking and drug smuggling, and some participants do not allow their forces to conduct anti-piracy missions.

The new force underscores the urgency to act after a stunning rise in pirate assaults off the Horn of Africa last year: At least 111 ships were targeted and 42 of them commandeered, including a Ukrainian cargo shop loaded with tanks and heavy weapons and a Saudi oil tanker with $100 million worth of crude.

At leas t two more ships have been hijacked this month, leaving about 15 vessels and about 300 crew members in pirate hands, according to the International Maritime Bureau's piracy reporting center.

The Horn of Africa is at the southernmost end of one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, which passes through the Gulf of Aden from the Suez Canal. The International Maritime Organization estimates that 12 percent of the oil transported by sea travels that route.

A Russian missile frigate, the Neutrashimy, has been escorting merchant ships through the Gulf of Aden since late October. Three Chinese warships arrived there this week.

Vice Adm. Bill Gortney, commander of the Combined Maritime Forces in Manama, Bahrain, said merchant ships have increased their defensive maneuvers and helped thwart attacks.

"But the problem of piracy is and continues to be a problem that begins ashore and is an international problem that requires an international solution," Gortney said in a news release. "We believe the establishment of CTF-151 is a significant step in the right direction."

Joseph Cox, president of the Chamber of Shipping of America, agreed. "We applaud the decision of the U.S. government to become involved in this vexing issue," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

Kate Wiltrout, (757) 446-2629, kate.wiltrout@pilotonline.com