Maritime Piracy: EP supports extension till December 2014 of anti-piracy Operation Atalanta.

Georgios Koumoutsakos MEP, Member of the Committee on Transport and Tourism of the European Parliament, and Michael Gahler MEP, EPP Group Coordinator in the EP's Subcommittee on Security and Defence, have welcomed today's adoption by the plenary session of the European Parliament of a Joint Resolution on the fight against maritime piracy, further to the European Commission statement in March.

The Resolution, which was initiated by Georgios Koumoutsakos MEP and tabled by the Committee on Transport and the Subcommittee on Security and Defence, was fully supported by four political groups (EPP, S&D, ALDE and ECR).

In the adopted Resolution, the European Parliament, inter alia:

 

• Underlines the need for a coherent response against the multifaceted maritime piracy threat in view of the elimination of its root causes;
• Welcomes the prolongation of the mandate of EU-NAVFOR ATALANTA until December 2014 and the extension of the area of operations;
• Calls on the Member States to investigate and trace the flow of money onshore and confiscate the money paid as ransom;
• Stresses the need for immediate and effective measures to prosecute and punish those suspected of acts of piracy;
• Urges third countries and the EU Member States that have not yet done so to transpose all the provisions laid down by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) into their national law;
• Draws attention to the importance of the humanitarian dimension of maritime piracy and expresses its concern on the impact on shipping, international trade and economy, regional security and stability.

"The adoption of the Resolution today by the European Parliament confirms the political will and commitment to insist on the definite eradication of the scourge of maritime piracy. We expect those EU Institutions in charge, the governments of the Member States, the UN, the African Union and everybody contributing to this attempt to make the most of the strong political impetus and support of the European Parliament", Georgios Koumoutsakos and Michael Gahler stated.