RED SEA PIRACY: HUDAYDAH'S PUBLIC AND PRIVATE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 001330

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR NEA/ARP AMACDONALD AND OES/MSN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON EWWT JA PGOV PHSA PREF YM
SUBJECT: RED SEA PIRACY: HUDAYDAH'S PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
SECTORS HIT HARD


1. (SBU) SUMMARY. In a July 21 visit to Hudaydah, political
figures, business leaders, and the local Coast Guard
commander described how piracy is driving up business and
security costs for public and private sector alike, at a time
when both are are feeling squeezed by the international
financial crisis. While the ROYG is devoting more resources
to combating piracy, various interlocutors agree that piracy
cannot be eliminated until the situation in Somalia
stabilizes. END SUMMARY.

PIRACY MOVES NORTH INTO THE RED SEA
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2. (U) International efforts to combat piracy in the Gulf
of Aden and Bab-al-Mandab straits have pushed piracy
northward into the Red Sea. While no vessel transiting the
Red Sea has yet been captured by pirates, Yemeni forces
thwarted three attempted attacks against Hudaydah-bound
vessels in the month of July. In fact, on July 21, the same
day that EmbOffs visited Hudaydah, Yemeni forces fought off a
fierce attack by 14 pirate boats against a Yemeni oil tanker
en route to Hudaydah, Yemen's largest Red Sea port.
According to the International Maritime Bureau, attempted
hijackings in the Red Sea have increased from zero last year
to four so far this year, with another two attempts at the
northern reaches of the Bab-al-Mandab.

PIRACY'S IMPACT ON HUDAYDAH
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3. (SBU) During their day trip to Hudaydah, EmbOffs heard
from political figures, business leaders, and the Yemeni
Coast Guard (YCG) about how piracy is affecting the
governorate. Hudaydah Chamber of Commerce head and General
People's Congress (GPC) Member of Parliament Abduljalil
Thabet told EconOff that piracy attacks had taken a severe
toll on port calls at Hudaydah in the past year. A
roundtable of Hudaydah businessmen said all aspects of the
local economy had been negatively affected by the reduced
number of ships in the area and the arrival of hundreds of
Somali immigrants every year. Hudaydah Governor Ahmed Salem
al-Jabali echoed those concerns, telling EmbOffs that piracy
is driving up insurance rates, transportation rates, and port
operational costs, and "putting more financial burdens on the
government," which is already feeling the strain from the
international financial crisis. Representatives of the
opposition Joint Meeting Parties (JMP) also included piracy
among the problems plaguing Hudaydah governorate. Hade Hayj
of the Islah Party told EmbOffs that piracy "is an example of
our interconnected world" and that the solution is ultimately
political: resolving the situation in Somalia.

ROYG ANTI-PIRACY EFFORTS
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4. (SBU) The Hudaydah branch of the YCG has an area of
responsibility that stretches north from Hudaydah to Midi,
about 557 kilometers of coastline. "We do a lot with a
little," said Hudaydah Coast Guard General Manager Colonel
Jamal Shaif when describing his force's anti-piracy efforts.
He said their greatest needs are larger boats and better
weapons that do not corrode at sea. Shaif said the YCG is
feeling the effect of recent budget cuts and is slashing its
expenses on everything but fuel and maintenance. (Note:
According to Major Amen al-Ansei, YCG Director of Public
Relations, the YCG's budget for 2009 was cut by half, except
for its fuel budget, which was cut by 25 percent. End Note.)
The Hudaydah Coast Guard has also begun providing
international commercial vessels with shipriders for a fee.
(Note: According to Ansei, the YCG expects to generate about
$200,000 per year from the shipriders program; this money
will be used to cover operational expenses. End Note.) The
Yemeni Navy (YNAV) is also fighting piracy in the Red Sea,
and has joined 10 Arab nations (the GCC plus Djibouti,
Jordan, Egypt, and Sudan) in an all-Arab Maritime Task Force,
led by the Saudi Navy.


5. (SBU) To help address the YCG's equipment needs, the USG
is providing two mid-sized (28-meter) boats. YCG Commander
Ali Ahmed Rassa told PolOffs on July 13 that the Japanese
government may provide an additional three mid-sized ships
and the ROYG may purchase others. With them, said Rassa, "We
will be able to participate with international forces in
international waters." However, Rassa acknowledged that
"eliminating piracy will be impossible without solving the
Somalia problem."

COMMENT

SANAA 00001330 002 OF 002


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6. (SBU) Piracy in the Gulf of Aden - and increasingly in
the Red Sea - is hurting Hudaydah businesses and stretching
the already limited resources of one of Yemen's poorest
governorates and the YCG. While the Coast Guard has managed
to prevent any pirate captures thus far, if piracy continues
to increase in the Red Sea, it is only a matter of time
before an attack is successful. END COMMENT.
BRYAN