NATO: UK Warship Confronts Pirates in Gulf of Aden

Pictured here in this undated file photo, HMS Cumberland has been conducting anti-piracy deterrence patrols and has a Royal Marine unit on board to engage in boarding operations. (Royal Navy photo.)

News in Balance:

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2008 -- The Royal Navy Warship HMS Cumberland, one of the three NATO ships involved in Operation Allied Provider, successfully warded off an attack by a group of pirates, who were attempting to take control of a commercial vessel off the Horn of Africa on 11 November.

NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer stated: "I commend the crew of the Cumberland for the action they have taken while defending a Danish ship against pirates. They carried out their mission with courage and professionalism."

He added "This incident demonstrates NATO's determination to play its part in deterring piracy off the Somali coast, as the UN has asked us to do."

Since Operation Allied Provider began on 24 October, the UK frigate HMS Cumberland has been conducting anti-piracy deterrence patrols in the Indian Ocean, as assigned by NATO, following a request by the United Nations to assist in this regional threat.

(Report from a NATO news release.)

Related:
NATO to Help Combat Pirates off Somalia
NATO Anti-Piracy Task Force Transits Suez Canal
5 Pirate Attacks Thwarted in Gulf of Aden

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