Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09BRUSSELS637
2009-05-05 14:42:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Brussels
Cable title:  

BELGIUM: MAY 29 PIRACY CONTACT GROUP MEETING

Tags:  MARR ECON PREL BE SO 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO6575
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RUEHRN RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHTRO
DE RUEHBS #0637 1251442
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 051442Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8889
INFO RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA 0117
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0283
C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 000637 

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/WE, EUR/RPM, PM/PPA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/06/2019
TAGS: MARR ECON PREL BE SO
SUBJECT: BELGIUM: MAY 29 PIRACY CONTACT GROUP MEETING

REF: A. STATE 45157

B. BRUSSELS 580

C. BRUSSELS 624

Classified By: Political Economic Counselor Richard Eason, reason 1.4(b
) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 000637

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/WE, EUR/RPM, PM/PPA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/06/2019
TAGS: MARR ECON PREL BE SO
SUBJECT: BELGIUM: MAY 29 PIRACY CONTACT GROUP MEETING

REF: A. STATE 45157

B. BRUSSELS 580

C. BRUSSELS 624

Classified By: Political Economic Counselor Richard Eason, reason 1.4(b
) and (d).


1. (C) Poloff delivered ref A demarche on the May 29 Contact
Group meeting to Peter Vandevelde, Counselor for European
Security and Defense Policy in the Belgian Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, on May 5. Vandevelde said that the GOB will
be represented at the May 29 meeting in New York. However,
at the previous plenary meetings of the Contact Group,
Belgium was represented from its UN mission, and it has not
yet been decided if anyone from Brussels will go. Vandevelde
and a colleague from the Ministry of Defense will attend the
Working Group 1 meeting in London on May 7-8, and some
Belgian legal experts are attending the Copenhagen meeting on
legal issues the week of May 4. Vandevelde thanked Poloff
for the United State's commitment to the fight against piracy
and its leadership of the contact group.


2. (C) Vandevelde said that the Belgian government's
attention has been concentrated on the piracy issue by the
recent hijacking of a Belgian ship, which is still held by
Somali pirates. The Belgian merchant fleet is among the top
20 in the world, both in number of ships and tonnage.
Freedom of navigation through the Suez Canal and the Indian
Ocean is important to Belgian importers and exporters, and to
ships of other nations that use the seaports of Antwerp and
Zeebrugge. Therefore, the government has decided to send
8-member military "Vessel Protection Detachments" to the
region, in order to offer additional protection to Belgian
ships, if requested by the shipowners. (Note: On April 29,
the Council of Ministers approved putting the military on
board Belgian merchant ships passing through Somali waters
between now and the end of June. The Ministers required
shipowners to first request assistance from the EU-led
Atalanta operation (in which one of Belgium's two naval
frigates, the Marie-Louise, will participate from September)
before they turn to the Belgian military. Reportedly, the
charge for the service will be 115,000 euros for a week-long
mission. End Note.) The government is in close contact with
its shipowners to share information and coordinate actions.
It is working on legislation to make it possible to bring
captured pirates before Belgian courts.


3. (C) Vandevelde said that in his opinion, the idea of
targeting pirates' assets is sound and the government looks
forward to hearing more about it in New York. The strategy
has been proven to work against the Mafia, he said, and
piracy in Somalia has much in common with that criminal
organization. It is run by a number of godfathers who have
carved up the territory and send their "soldiers" out to do
the dirty work, he observed.

BUSH
.