RP, US forge pact on anti-sea piracy cooperation

President Arroyo on Friday (Saturday in Manila) witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Philippines and the United States on “Cooperation in Maritime Counter-Piracy, Training and Education” in Washington D.C.

The MoU was signed by Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo on behalf of the Philippines and American Transportation and Communications Secretary Ray La Hood in simple ceremonies following a courtesy call made by La Hood on Mrs. Arroyo at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel where she and her delegation were billetted.

In a media briefing, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said the signing of the MoU is very significant for Filipinos considering that the Philippines is among the biggest seafaring nations in the world and the problem of international piracy, especially in the Gulf of Aden with the Somali pirates, has been a very serious cause of concern for several countries.

“And the signing of this MoU between the Philippines and the United States is hoped to send the message to the international pirates that the US is solidly backing the Philippine seafarers in this case,” he said.

Remonde noted that one of the salient features of the MoU involves the training of Filipino seamen on self defense to prepare and equip them for possible encounters with sea pirates, among other threats in their line of work.

The MoU primarily aims to promote cooperation between the two countries in providing training and education to maritime personnel, primarily in how to protect themselves against assailants like pirates at sea, and the advancement of each country’s maritime interests.

The areas of cooperation under the MoU may include strengthening cooperative relationships so as to build institutional capacity to promote the training and education of maritime personnel, with a focus on counter-piracy training and may draw upon available resources of the participants, including the United States Merchant Marine Academy, and maritime personnel training institutions of the Philippines.

As stated under the MoU, other areas of cooperation may include, “but are not limited to” the following:

— exchanges of information on best practices with respect to the enhancement of vessel security against threats of pirate attacks;

— piracy and armed attacks as elements of current security threats and patterns;

— international conventions, legislation, and regulation concerned with piracy;

— execution of response plans for incidents involving attacks by pirates;

— drills and exercises that provide practice in responding to acts of piracy or attempted piracy, including those based on lessons learned or experiences of seafarers held as hostages; and,

— exploring possible avenues for exchanges of maritime students and faculty, on mutually accepted terms. –With a report from PNA