Antony said piracy can be tackled effectively only by a combined global effort under the joint operational command of the United Nations.
Hinting at a possible link between terror groups and Somali pirates, India today pitched for fighting the sea brigands under the aegis of the United Nations.
Defence Minister AK Antony said piracy can be tackled effectively only by a combined global effort under the joint operational command of the United Nations.
"We don't think piracy menace is only because of Somali pirates. There are more powerful groups and forces behind the menace. They are somewhere else. There should be a Joint Operational Command under the UN to tackle the issue," he told a press conference here.
In the recent past, Indian agencies have been probing possible links between terror groups such as al Qaeda and the Somali pirates.
Pointing out that all the major navies of the world, including the US, China, Russia and France were present in the piracy-hit Gulf of Aden, Antony said despite that the piracy menace was not yet under control.
"We feel unless there is combined action by all the seafaring nations of world, it will be difficult to contain piracy," he said.
On the proposed anti-piracy law to tackle pirates, Antony said "we are in the process of finalising a new policy on this issue and it will be finalised by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) very soon."
The Defence Minister was asked about the steps taken by government to provide effective laws to the Navy and the Coast Guard to tackle pirates as the Indian Penal Code does not have any rovision to deal with the issue.
In the absence of such a law, Navy and the Coast Guard have to release pirates after disarming them and taking away all the material which can be used by them for piracy.
Antony said when the international navies present in the Gulf of Aden exert pressure on the pirates there, they tend to come close to the Indian backyard near Lakshadweep and the Indian Ocean Region.
India has been deploying at least one warship each in the Gulf of Aden to tackle pirates and have been successful in thwarting several attacks on merchant ships.
Asked about the issue of killing of Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy, the Minister said the issue has been taken up with the Lankan government through proper channel to avoid such incidents.
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