India sends warship to pirate-infested Gulf of Aden

NEW DELHI (AFP) – India is deploying one of its latest warships to the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia to protect its merchant vessels, officials said Friday.

A "stealth frigate is being diverted to these waters," Indian navy spokesman Nirad Sinha said. The Russian-designed vessel can evade radar and is armed with guided missiles and cannons, naval officials said.

The move comes after the MT Stolt Valor carrying mainly Indian crew was hijacked on September 17 by Somali pirates in the gulf.

"The government has approved the deployment of one warship with immediate effect to patrol the route followed by Indian flagships between Oman and Yemen," another defence ministry official said.

The number of warships could be increased later, the officer added.

The other warships could carry heavily armed marine commandos and combat helicopters, officials said.

"Currently, our mandate is general patrol and escort duties but we are prepared in case the profile changes to engagements, pursuits and combat in the region," a senior naval commander who did not wish to be named told AFP.

The deployment follows weeks of protests by shipworkers and families of the detained crew who have been demanding rescue efforts for the MT Stolt Valor's crew of 22.

Eighteen crew members are Indians while there are two Filipinos, a Bangladeshi and a Russian.

"The presence of Indian Navy in the area will help to protect our seaborne trade and instil confidence in our seafaring community, as well as function as a deterrent for pirates," a statement said.

The Gulf of Aden is a "major strategic choke point in the Indian Ocean region and provides access to the Suez Canal through which the sizeable portion of India's trade flows," the statement noted.

Warships from several other nations patrol the Gulf of Aden, one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.

The International Maritime Bureau reported more than 24 attacks off the Somali coast between April and June and more have been committed in recent months.

Maritime experts say many attacks go unreported along Somalia's 3,700-kilometre (2,300-mile) coast where pirates operate high-powered speedboats and carry heavy machine guns and rocket launchers.