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Friday, September 3, 2010     GET REAL

Global coalition gaining traction against piracy

ABU DHABI — Piracy was reported to have decreased in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea in mid-2010.

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Officials cited improved early warnings, actionable intelligence of piracy attacks and an increase in the number of disrupted attempts.

Turkey has assumed command of a Western-led task force in the Gulf. The Turkish Navy has received the command of the U.S.-led Combined Task Force-151, based in Bahrain. On Sept. 1, Turkish Navy Rear Adm. Sinan Ertugrul took over the international anti-piracy mission from South Korea.


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Officials said CTF-151 has been coordinating with other task forces in the region. They included those from the European Union, NATO as well as CTF-465 and -508.

Ertugrul replaced South Korean Navy Rear Adm. Beom-rim Lee. Officials said during his six month tour, Lee increased coordination with Gulf Cooperation Council states, including Bahrain, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, as well as air operations.

"Illegal activities such as piracy and armed robbery are not only a threat to global maritime commerce, but also have disruptive effects on the freedom of navigation, which is directly linked to maritime security," Ertugrul said.

Turkey has contributed its TCG Gokceada to CTF-151, established in January 2009 to protect the Gulf and Arabian Sea from pirates. The 25-nation task force included Britain, Jordan, Pakistan and the United States.

"It is important for us to share the latest strategic operations and tactical knowledge and I believe that we have worked seamlessly together toward our mutual goals," Lee said.

This marked the second time Turkey has taken command of CTF-151. Turkish Navy Rear Adm. Caner Bener commanded CTF-151 from May through August 2009.



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