A South Korean navy destroyer rushed toward a US-bound supertanker believed to have been hijacked by Somali pirates with up to US$160 million of crude oil on board, officials said yesterday, the latest bold seizure in the Indian Ocean.
The tanker’s highly volatile cargo prevents crews from carrying guns on board or even lighting cigarettes while on deck. It was unclear what the warship would do once it reached the tanker since firing on the vessel would risk igniting the oil or leaking it into the sea.
The warship had been in the Gulf of Aden — one of the world’s busiest and most dangerous shipping lanes — on anti-piracy operations. The 300,000-tonne-class tanker was about 1,500km southeast of the gulf at the time of the apparent hijacking on Sunday, the Foreign Ministry said. It has 24 crew — five South Koreans and 19 Filipinos.
The warship was ordered to move toward Somali waters where the South Korean-operated tanker was expected to be taken. The destroyer will need a little more than a day to catch up to the tanker, ministry spokesman Kim Young-sun said yesterday.
“We’re doing this in cooperation with the ships of our allies,” Kim said, declining further comment citing efforts to “ensure the safety of the crewmen and the success of possible negotiations.”
The navy received a call on Sunday from the Samho Dream supertanker saying three pirates had boarded, and then there was no more contact, a ministry official said late on Sunday. She spoke on condition of anonymity in line with ministry policy.
The vessel operator said yesterday it had lost contact with the ship.
“We currently cannot reach the Samho Dream’s captain,” said Cho Yong-woo of Busan, South Korea-based Samho Shipping.
He said the ship was owned by a Singaporean company.
The tanker was sailing from Iraq to the US state of Louisiana with its 24 sailors, the ministry said.
The Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that officials were coordinating with the Marshall Island-flagged ship’s principal, the local manning agency and the Philippine embassies in Nairobi and Seoul “for the early resolution of the case.”
The Samho Dream had no security detail because Somali pirates were believed to be inactive in the area where the tanker was seized — several hundred kilometers from Somalia, Cho said.
The waters surrounding the Horn of Africa nation, including the Gulf of Aden, which connects the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, are known to be among the world’s most dangerous. An international flotilla, including warships from the US, the EU, NATO, Japan and China, has been patrolling the area to protect the vital sea lane that links Asia to Europe, but pirates have also shown an ability to strike farther afield, on the high seas.
In November, a Greek-flagged oil supertanker traveling from Saudi Arabia to New Orleans was hijacked in open water, hundreds of kilometers off the Somali coast.
It was traveling with no escort because warships patrolling the dangerous waters were stretched too thin. It was eventually freed after a US$5.5 million ransom was paid.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS