The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia signed the Code of Conduct

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia signed the Code of Conduct

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia signed the “Code of Conduct on the Suppression of Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden (Code of Conduct)” on March 10, becoming the 13th country to do so.

Dr. Jubarah Bin Alsuraisry, Minister of Transport of Saudi Arabia, signed the code on behalf of his government during an official visit to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) headquarters in London.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, following the instructions of King Abdullah, exerts every efforts to build bridges of cooperation with countries all over the world, especially by taking initiatives and participating in an effective way in order to achieve stability and world security, where through the United Nations and its specialized agencies, or through continuous cooperation with all countries in this field, Dr. Alsuraisry said.

IMO Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropolous welcomed the signing by Saudi Arabia as a boost to the effective implementation of the Djbouti Code of Conduct in the region.

The unabated acts of piracy, not only in waters off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden but also in the wider expanse of the western Indian Ocean, continue to be in the public spotlight. Our concern should above all, be for the safety of life at sea and the well-being of the seafarers and other victims involved and their respective families. We should, therefore, not rest unless and until all the necessary measures to suppress and eradicate piracy have been taken, Mitropoulos said.

The support of Saudi Arabia for the effective implementation of the Djibouti Code of Conduct and for the efforts to protect international shipping by the naval forces deployed in the region are, therefore, important contributions, he added.

During the visit to IMO, the minister also discussed other matters with Mitropolous, including this years World Maritime Day theme, 2010: Year of the Seafarer, technical cooperation matters and measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships, ahead of the forthcoming meeting of IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) to be held from March 22 to 26.

Saudi Arabia has been a member of IMO since 1969 and has actively supported IMOs technical cooperation activities, including contributions to the IMO Maritime Security Fund and its Integrated Technical Cooperation Program. Saudi Arabia has provided bilateral financial support for activities to ensure maritime safety, security and environmental protection in the Straits of Malacca and Singaore.

The Djibouti Code of Conduct was adopted by a regional meeting on maritime security, piracy and armed robbery against ships for Western Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden and Red Sea states, held in January 2009 and signed initially by nine countries, bringing it into effect immediately. To date, it had been signed by the follwoing countries: Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Seycheles, Somalia, Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania and Yemen.

Signatories to the code have undertaken to review their national legislation to ensure they have laws in place to criminalize piracy and armed robbery against ships and adequate provisions for the exercise of jurisdiction, conduct of investigations and prosecution of alleged offenders. The code also provides for the sharing of piracy information, through information-sharing centers to be established in Sanaa in Yemen, Mombasa in Kenya and Dar es Salaam in the United Republic of Tanzania. A training center is also envisaged to be established in Djibouti.

To assist in the implementation of the Djibouti Code of Conduct, a program of activities has been developed within IMO and is already underway. It incldues the following projects:

Regional activities to review national legislation on piracy

The establishment of a training center in Djibouti to train key personnel from the region

The establishment and operation of three above-mentioned information-sharing centers

Workshops to train national focal points and staff of the information-sharing centers

The training of coast guard and other personnel entrusted with law enforcemnt roles; and initiatives for enhancing maritime situational awareness

Source:shiptalk