Seychelles on alert as Somali piracy resurges and new dangers emerge on vital sea lanes
Projectiles striking vessels in the Red Sea and near the Strait of Hormuz are highlighting a changing maritime security landscape, as Seychelles tracks rising insecurity across the wider Indian Ocean.
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Major General Michael Rosette, the Chief of Defence Forces, told SNA that the incidents are adding a new dimension to longstanding threats such as piracy and narcotics trafficking.
“We are seeing new crimes. Vessels are being hit with projectiles in the Red Sea and in the Strait of Hormuz,” Rosette said in an interview with SNA on Tuesday.
He said attacks of this kind were especially troubling because they could affect ships travelling international routes and disrupt legitimate maritime commerce.
“These are the kinds of crimes that are not good for vessels using the sea,” Rosette said, stressing that such actions should not be used to interfere with trade or other lawful maritime activity.
At the same time, Seychelles is watching for evidence that piracy is returning to the region.
“We are seeing piracy return again, and that is one of our major concerns,” he said.
Rosette said Seychelles, which chairs the Contact Group on Illicit Maritime Activities (CGIMA), has been monitoring recent piracy incidents closely. The CGIMA succeeded the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS), created as an international coordination mechanism in response to Somali piracy. Its remit has since expanded to cover a broader range of illicit maritime activities, although piracy remains a central concern.
During Seychelles’ chairmanship, the group has worked to improve regional cooperation, information-sharing, capacity-building and coordination between countries and maritime security partners.
Seychelles also hosts the Regional Coordination Operations Centre (RCOC), which works alongside regional partners to share information and support coordinated responses to threats in the western Indian Ocean.
“We are very concerned about the recent acts of piracy,” Rosette said.
At the time of the interview, about five vessels remained held off the Somali coast, according to Rosette. He also mentioned a vessel that had recently been freed after a large ransom was paid.
Rosette said Seychelles was alarmed by the renewed activity and called on those involved to stop the attacks and seek lawful means of earning a living.
Authorities are tracking more than piracy in the region.
Rosette said Seychelles was also watching narcotics trafficking in the Indian Ocean, along with other illicit activity taking place farther north.
“We are also monitoring narcotics trafficking taking place in the Indian Ocean and other illicit activities happening in the north. We are very aware of what is happening, and we are preparing ourselves for any eventuality should it come closer to us,” he said.
The issue is particularly significant for Seychelles, a 115-island archipelago in the western Indian Ocean whose maritime territory is far larger than its landmass. Trade, fisheries, tourism and connectivity all depend heavily on the ocean, making secure sea routes essential to the country’s economy and population.
Seychelles therefore faces a maritime security challenge that combines long-running transnational crimes, including piracy and narcotics trafficking, with newer threats appearing along major international shipping corridors.
Rosette said Seychelles would continue to monitor developments across the region and prepare for the possibility that the threats could approach its waters.
Seychelles’ experience with Somali piracy
Seychelles has long been an important participant in regional efforts to counter piracy.
Somali piracy emerged as a major security and economic threat to Seychelles from around 2009, when pirate operations expanded across the western Indian Ocean and towards Seychellois waters. Fishermen from Seychelles were among those held hostage, while the country worked with EU NAVFOR’s Operation Atalanta, NATO, the Combined Maritime Forces and other international partners on surveillance, interception and prosecutions.
At the height of the crisis, Seychelles estimated that piracy had cost the country about 4% of GDP. Port and fisheries receipts dropped by 30%, while annual spending on anti-piracy patrols and surveillance exceeded €2.3 million. Attacks off Somalia reached a peak of 236 in 2011, then declined sharply to 75 in 2012, 15 in 2013 and two reportedly unsuccessful attacks in 2014.
Seychelles also developed into one of the region’s principal venues for prosecuting suspected Somali pirates. From 2009 to 2013, the island nation prosecuted more suspected pirates than any other country in the region. By 2015, its courts had handled around 142 suspected pirates, with 138 convictions reported.
