VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHC #7018 0262352
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 262342Z JAN 09
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE 0000

UNCLAS STATE 007018 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: UNSC PREL PHUM PHSA EWWT KCRM SO XA XW
SUBJECT: SOMALIA: TRANSMITTING PIRACY CONTACT GROUP 
COMMUNIQUE TO THE SC 
 
¶1. USUN is instructed to transmit the attached letter in 
paragraph 2 announcing the formation of the Contact Group on 
Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS)to the Security 
Council President.  USUN should also transmit to the Security 
Council President the Communiqu (para 3) referenced in the 
letter. 
 
¶2. Begin letter: 
 
Excellency, 
 
I have the honor to inform you that on January 14, 
twenty-four States and five regional and international 
organizations met in New York and formed the Contact Group on 
Piracy off the Coast of Somalia.  The group was formed in 
response to the UN Security Council's call for States and 
regional organizations fighting piracy off the coast of 
Somalia to establish an international cooperation mechanism 
to act as a common point of contact on all aspects of 
combating piracy and armed robbery at sea. 
 
The first meeting of this group was extremely successful. 
During the meeting it was decided the group would keep the 
Security Council informed regularly of its activities and 
decisions.  I have attached the joint communiqu issued by 
the group following the meeting.  I would very much 
appreciate if you would circulate this document to the 
members of the Security Council. 
 
Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest 
consideration. 
 
Sincerely, 
 
Dr. Susan Rice 
Permanent Representative 
 
end letter. 
 
¶3. Begin communiqu: 
 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia met at 
United Nations Headquarters in New York on January 14, 2009, 
and agreed on the following statement. 
 
Begin Text: 
 
Pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1851, 
the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS) 
was established on January 14, 2009 to facilitate discussion 
and coordination of actions among states and organizations to 
suppress piracy off the coast of Somalia.  The CGPCS will 
report its progress periodically to the UN Security Council. 
Participating in the meeting were representatives from: 
Australia, China, Denmark, Djibouti, Egypt, France, Germany, 
Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Republic of Korea, The 
Netherlands, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia TFG, Spain, 
Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, 
and Yemen, as well as the African Union, the European Union, 
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the UN 
Secretariat, and the International Maritime Organization. 
 
The Contact Group notes with deep concern that piracy off the 
coast of Somalia grew significantly in 2008, and that attacks 
on shipping vessels can be expected to increase without 
enhanced international efforts.  In 2008, over 100 attacks, 
including over 40 successful seizures, resulted in hundreds 
of persons taken hostage.  The pirates have been demanding 
million-dollar ransoms for release of the hostages, ships and 
cargoes.  Piracy disrupts critical humanitarian aid 
deliveries to Somalia, increases shipping insurance premiums 
along one of the world's most traveled routes to 
near-prohibitive levels, damages littoral economies by 
forcing the diversion of vessels around the Cape of Good 
Hope, and raises the prospect of an environmental disaster as 
ships fall prey to hostile intent.  Piracy is a symptom of a 
wider lack of security and rule of law in Somalia and 
continues to constitute a threat to regional stability. As 
important, piracy is symptomatic of the overall situation in 
Somalia including the prevalence of illegal fishing and toxic 
waste dumping off the coast of Somalia, which adversely 
affects the Somali economy and marine environment. As such, 
piracy issues must be kept in mind as one element of a larger 
challenge, and international support for initiatives such as 
the international Contact Group on Somalia must be encouraged 
as well as support for the Contact Group on Piracy off the 
Coast of Somalia. The CGPCS considers its activities as part 
of wider international efforts to secure peace and stability 
in Somalia. 
 
As an international cooperation mechanism created pursuant to 
Security Council resolution 1851 to act as a point of contact 
between and among states, regional and international 
organizations on aspects of combating piracy and armed 
robbery at sea off Somalia's coast, the CGPCS will inform the 
UN Security Council on a regular basis of the progress of its 
activities, including through providing relevant information 
to the UN Secretary General for possible incorporation into 
his periodic reports to the Council. 
 
The CGPCS emphasizes the primary role of Somalia itself in 
rooting out piracy and armed robbery at sea and the 
importance of assisting Somalia in strengthening its own 
operational capacity to fight piracy and bring to justice 
those involved in piracy. 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia applauds 
the efforts countries, industry, and regional and 
international organizations have taken to address the piracy 
problem pursuant to Security Council resolutions.  Of 
particular note, the CGPCS applauds the counter-piracy 
operations that individual nations, Combined Maritime Forces 
(CMF), NATO and the EU have undertaken during the last six 
months. 
 
Pursuant to UNSCR 1851, States and regional organizations 
fighting piracy and armed robbery at sea off the coast of 
Somalia will consider creating a center in the region to 
coordinate information relevant to piracy and armed robbery 
at sea off the coast of Somalia (the Counter-Piracy 
Coordination Center) as soon as possible in 2009.  Pending 
the establishment of such a center, the Contact Group will 
look to put interim arrangements in place. The CGPCS asks 
participating states, international and regional 
organizations to support both the interim and follow-on 
facilities. 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia agrees 
that better operational information is needed in order to 
address the problem of piracy off the coast of Somalia, and 
calls on members to contribute additional operational 
information and surveillance assets to the region. 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia 
recognizes the importance of apprehending and prosecuting 
suspected pirates.  The CGPCS calls on state parties to 
implement their obligations under relevant treaties and 
applicable international law, including in particular the UN 
Convention on the Law of the Sea, with respect to suppressing 
piracy, establishing jurisdiction, and accepting delivery of 
suspected pirates, and to discuss, as appropriate, the 
applicability of other international instruments including 
the 1988 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts 
Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation ("SUA Convention"), 
and the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime. 
 
The CGPCS will examine practical options for strengthening 
the ability of countries willing to detain and prosecute 
suspected pirates.  It will also examine options for 
developing other mechanisms to address piracy, including 
international judicial mechanisms. The Group welcomes the 
efforts of States, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, and the 
UN Development Program to build judicial capacity and 
commends the Government of Kenya in particular for supporting 
the prosecution of suspected pirates.  The Contact Group on 
Piracy off the Coast of Somalia notes the work of the 
maritime shipping industry and the International Maritime 
Organization (IMO) to establish measures to prevent and 
suppress acts of piracy and armed robbery for commercial 
vessels transiting the region.  International maritime 
industry groups have taken efforts to address the piracy 
threat.  Of note is the adoption by the world's leading 
shipping, cargo, and insurance organizations of a set of 
common best management practices which were based on 
recommendations by the EU's Maritime Security Center - Horn 
of Africa (MSC-HOA). The CGPCS will continue to work with the 
IMO, shipping industry representatives, and shipping 
companies to increase the distribution and voluntary 
employment of best practices and threat information. 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia 
reaffirms its respect for Somalia's sovereignty, territorial 
integrity, and sovereign rights over natural resources, and 
its participants ensure that their flagged vessels respect 
these rights. 
 
The CGPCS offers participation to any nation or international 
organization making a tangible contribution to the 
counter-piracy effort, or any country significantly affected 
by piracy off the coast of Somalia.  As such, the Contact 
Group extends invitations to Belgium, Norway, Portugal, 
Sweden, and the Arab League. 
 
The CGPCS identified six related focus areas: improving 
operational and information support to counter-piracy 
operations, establishing a counter-piracy coordination 
mechanism, strengthening judicial frameworks for arrest, 
prosecution and detention of pirates, strengthening 
commercial shipping self-awareness and other capabilities, 
pursuing improved diplomatic and public information efforts, 
and tracking financial flows related to piracy. 
 
The participants agreed to establish four working groups in 
which all CGPCS parties may participate, to address the focus 
areas.  Working Group 1 will address activities related to 
military and operational coordination and information sharing 
and the establishment of the regional coordination center, 
and will be convened by the United Kingdom with the support 
of the International Maritime Organization.  Denmark will 
convene Working Group 2 to address judicial aspects of piracy 
with the support of UNODC.  The United States agreed to 
convene Working Group 3 to strengthen shipping self-awareness 
and other capabilities, with the support of IMO.  Egypt 
agreed to convene Working Group 4 to improve diplomatic and 
public information efforts on all aspects of piracy. 
 
Additionally, participating states affirmed the importance of 
attention to financial flows to pirates and their activities 
and decided to remain seized of the issue.  The CGPCS also 
calls on international bodies that track illicit financial 
flows to examine the question of such flows to pirates and 
their operations and to report as appropriate to the CGPCS 
and other groups concerned with the issue. 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia agreed 
to establish a small Secretariat to support scheduling and 
reporting on the outcomes of meetings of the Contact Group 
and the working groups.  The CGPCS requests appropriate and 
relevant organizations and agencies to contribute to the 
Secretariat. 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia 
recognizes that the international community of interest is 
far greater than the participation of States in the CGPCS, 
and pledges to inform the larger community of all significant 
CGPCS conclusions, rationale and activities.  It recognizes 
that effective coordination of activities to eradicate piracy 
requires coordination among the entire international 
community, and so remains open to receiving input from CGPCS 
and non-CGPCS members. 
 
The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia plans to 
meet again in March 2009 to review the progress and direction 
of the four working groups and other developments.  It will 
consider, at that time, the addition of new members. 
 
End Communiqu 
CLINTON