| 14 Mar 2010 |
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Saudi Arabia signs pact to fight sea piracy
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RIYADH: The Kingdom has signed a major maritime code of conduct that calls for a revision of national legislation to criminalize sea piracy.
"Saudi Arabia's support for this agreement and its willingness to protect international shipping by deploying naval forces and stationing coastal guards are important contributions to confront piracy," said a statement released by the Ministry of Transport.
The statement said that the Kingdom has been a member of the London-based International Maritime Organization (IMO), where the accord was signed by Minister of Transport Jubarah Al-Suraisry last week.
"The signing of this agreement is significant in view of the fact that the Kingdom is the world's main oil exporting country," said Asim Siddiqui, an industry veteran. "The signing of the Djibouti Code will go a long way in ensuring protection for vessels, crew and commodities."
Siddiqui, who works for Saudi Maritime Company, said: "Ninety-five percent of Saudi imports and exports pass through the Kingdom's seaports while sailing across the waters of different countries where pirates are active."
A report released by the IMO said that an anti-piracy training center will be established in Djibouti with the help of the signatory states.
IMO Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropoulos said the agreement will help Riyadh exchange information with major regional information centers on piracy in Sanaa, Mombassa and Dar es Salaam.
"Our concern is, above all, for the safety of life at sea, our vessels in the waters and the protection of the seafarers and their respective families," Mitropoulos added.
The Djibouti code has so far been signed by the Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Jordan, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Oman, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania and Yemen, as well as observers from other IMO member states and UN specialized agencies.
By GHAZANFAR ALI KHAN
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