Friday, March 20, 2009

Indonesian warship to help patrol Somalian waters


20 Maret 2009, Jakarta -- Indonesian warship KRI Diponegoro-365, which is part of the Indonesian Maritime Task Force in the Garuda Contingent XXVIII-A in Lebanon, will carry out brief petrol to help maintain security in Somalian waters, the Indonesian military commander said.

Chief of the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI), General Djoko Santoso said here on Friday that KRI Diponegoro would take part in patrols for three days in Somalian waters during its journey to Lebanon to team up with UNIFIL`s Maritime Task Force (MTF) under the command of Task Force 448 (CTF 448).

"Coordination will be established with all the parties involved in securing these waters. KRI Diponegoro`s participation in the sea patrol is open and officially known to the United Nations," the TNI chief said.

At present 14 foreign warships from several countries such as Japan, the United States, India, Russia, European Union and others, are now deployed to maintain security in Somalian waters.

KRI Diponegoro-365 set off from the Maritime Command Base (Kolinlamil) and passed a number of ports of other countries such as Cochin in India, Salalah in Oman, Port Said in Egypt and Beirut in Lebanon, covering a total distance of 6,555 nautical miles.

Chief of the Indonesian Navy`s Information Service Commodore Iskandar Sitompul said KRI Diponegoro may stay for three days in the Somalian waters proceeding to Beirut, Lebanon.

"This is in line with International Law of the Sea, under which warships passing the waters of certain regions should take part securing the region," Sitompul said.

Somalia`s offshore waters are highly prone to piracy. The international maritime bureau reported that at least 24 attacks had taken place in the region between April and June this year.

Somalian armed groups had held hostage 10 ships recently and asked for a ransom to be paid at Eyl, a former fishery port in the country. (Antara)

No comments:

Post a Comment