Combating piracy in the Bay

Bay of Bengal security in focus after IMB and ReCAAP reports.

Combating piracy in the Bay

The Bay of Bengal is a nature’s gift to 116 million people of Bangladesh. The socio-economic lifeline of the country is inseparably linked to the Bay which provides passage to 95 per cent of its trades and offers livelihood to almost 30 million people. The sea has assumed great importance following successful delimitation of maritime boundaries with Myanmar and India. The disputes concerned delimitation of the territorial seas, exclusive economic zones and continental shelves in the Bay of Bengal. Economic implications of this delimitation are countless. Safety and security are two aspects that need priority now.

Of late, reports of rising piracy in the Bay of Bengal, as reported by the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) Information Sharing Centre (ISC), has triggered concerns in different quarters.

It is true that such piracy is sure to impinge upon Bangladesh’s sovereign right to explore, exploit, conserve, and manage living and non-living resources of water column, seabed and subsea strata and economic activities, such as the production of energy from the water, currents and winds within 200 nautical miles of exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

To continue reading, please click here.

Source: hellenicshippingnews.com