NATO asset shortage predicted

摘要

The naval task force charged with protecting vessels in the piracy-prone waters of the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden would need to be dramatically increased if it were to deliver a guaranteed response time of one hour to every vessel that comes under attack, Lt Cmdr Rolf Olsen of the NATO Shipping Centre told a meeting of shipowners and shipping firms in London. He said the situation was such that the current level of naval assets in the region was simply not high enough to patrol the ever increasing theatre of operations for Somali pirates.