Pirates, warships continue tense standoff near Somali coast
(Read article summary)The US and Russia fear that on-board weapons could reach Al Qaeda
A battle of nerves continued off Somalia's coast today, as the US and Russia turned up the heat on a group of vastly outgunned Somali pirates aboard a hijacked cargo vessel.
Several US warships kept their vigil and blockade of the Ukrainian cargo ship MV Faina. A Russian missile frigate steamed toward Somalia to add its muscle to the standoff. And on Wednesday, the Somali government authorized foreign use of force against the pirates.
That was a formality, since Somalia's weak central government holds little sway over much of its territory, or its pirate-infested waters.
The Washington Post reported that Somalia's president Abdullahi Yusuf on Wednesday urged action against the pirates.
Hijackings by pirates are a near daily occurrence off Somalia, and the international community has to date done little to stop them.
But this ship has garnered more attention. In addition to its 20-member crew, it's carrying 33 Russian-made tanks and ammunition, reportedly bound for southern Sudan via Kenya.
Now, the US fears those tanks could instead end up in the hands of Al Qaeda-linked Islamic militants in Somalia. The militants, particularly al Shabaab, are fighting to wrest control of the country from a weak, US-backed government in Mogadishu.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported that those militants have urged the pirates to destroy the ship and its cargo if they do not get the $20 million ransom they are demanding for the release of the cargo and crew.
