The Indian Navy’s rescue of a commercial ship from pirates off Somalia’s coast last weekend shows how Delhi’s military has developed special forces capabilities on par with some of the world’s best, analysts say.
The navy rescued 17 crew members of the vessel MV Ruen during an anti-piracy operation lasting nearly two days, according to an Indian Navy news release, with no casualties reported. Dozens of pirates were taken into custody, it said.
The operation involved a navy destroyer, a patrol ship, an Indian Air Force C-17 transporter flying more than 1,500 miles to airdrop marine commandos, a naval drone, a reconnaissance drone and a P-8 surveillance jet, the release said.
“The success of the operation marks the Indian Navy as a top-class force in terms of training, command and control and other capabilities,” said John Bradford, Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs fellow.
“What marks this operation as impressive is how risk was minimized by using a coordinated force that includes use of a warship, drones, fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, and marine commandos.”
Experts fear the volatile security situation in the Red Sea due to attacks by Yemen-based Houthi rebels on commercial shipping may tie up international forces and provide a window for Somali pirates in the nearby Horn of Africa – presenting a multi-billion-dollar threat to the global economy.
Yemen and Somalia are among the region’s poorest nations, both ravaged by years of civil war.
Somali pirates’ capture of the MV Ruen in December last year marked the first successful hijacking of a vessel off the country’s coast since 2017.
Spanish, Japanese and Indian warships tracked the Malta-flagged, Bulgarian-managed bulk carrier as it was taken into Somali territorial waters, according to a December report from the European Union Naval Force.
But when the Ruen, now operated by a pirate crew, last week left Somali waters with the intent of committing acts of piracy on the high seas, the Indian Navy made moves to intercept it, according to a navy statement posted on social platform X.
The destroyer INS Kolkata, operating in the area to help ensure international maritime security, used a ship-launched drone to confirm the Ruen was being operated by armed pirates, the Indian statement said.
edition.cnn.com/2024/03/19/india/india-pirate-ship-capture-intl-hnk-ml/index.html
