By: BRIG. GEN. ALI AHMED RASAA/Former CHAIRMAN, YEMENI COAST GUARD AUTHORITY
Yemen is important, thanks to its strategic location overlooking the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea, with a coastline stretching more than 2,400 kilometers. Yemen’s location on the Bab el Mandeb Strait, one of the most important straits for international maritime, has a special significance: It represents a passage for ships coming from and going to Europe through the Suez Canal.
That is why both large industrial nations and emerging industrial countries pay special attention to the strategic location of Yemen, especially since international maritime traffic has, during the last several years, faced real threats from Somali pirates. Since Somalia collapsed as a state more than 20 years ago, armed militias and terrorist organizations have controlled its affairs and relied on revenues from pirating and drug trafficking to finance criminal activities. Because of such threats, many countries sent warships to the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean to provide protection for commercial fleets. In spite of efforts to combat it, the piracy phenomenon persists for several reasons:
- the vast sea area in which piracy takes place
- the tactics used by pirates in carrying out their operations
- the sizable financial ransoms pirates gained from the owners of the commercial ships
- an upsurge in costs of operating military and international ships
For all these reasons and others, it was thought that big industrial nations, emerging industrial countries and oil-producing members of the Gulf Cooperation Council would cooperate with countries in this area, especially with Yemen because of its strategic location and long coastline across from Somalia. In the past few years, the International Maritime Organization moved an international shipping lane from the middle of the Gulf of Aden to be closer to the territorial waters of Yemen and away from Somali pirates. Piracy, however, has persisted.
Ali Ahmed Rasaa was born in Hajja, Yemen, in 1955. After joining the Police Academy, he graduated as a second lieutenant in 1975. Rasaa has served at various locations throughout Yemen and has held numerous posts, including director of the investigation department in public security and director of security and passports center in Harad in the Hajja governorate. In 1990, he was promoted to colonel and appointed director of the passports department at Sanaa International Airport. Rasaa has a bachelor’s degree in economics, which led to his appointment as deputy chairman of civil projects at Yemen’s General Investment Authority. In March 2002, Rasaa was promoted to brigadier general and appointed chairman of the Yemeni Coast Guard Authority. He was invited to be a key speaker representing Yemen at the Pentagon in 2008. Rasaa is married with four children.
During the past few years, Yemen established a group of monitoring and operational centers on its coastline overlooking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and equipped them with necessary tools, particularly a coastal monitoring system. The Yemeni Coast Guard Authority offered the use of a number of boats, financed either through international support or the government. Yemen was able to establish a strong infrastructure for its Coast Guard in spite of the country’s difficult economic situation. However, considering the vast area of water that has become the theater of piracy and the high cost of a 24/7 naval security presence, there is a need for serious and sincere international cooperation with Yemen so the Coast Guard can help protect the international maritime lane using routine naval patrols. This would be a less costly alternative to the presence of international naval fleets in the area.
It would be beneficial not only in combating piracy but also fighting drug trafficking, which has recently multiplied, as well as combating terrorist organizations’ activities and restraining their movement.
Yemen has proved that it is an effective partner with the international community whether it is combating terrorism or fighting organized crime, particularly drug and weapons trafficking. The latest achievement in that respect was the seizure of Jihan 1, an Iranian ship that had more than 40 tons of medium and heavy weapons, including 10 tons of explosives, on board. According to an International Security Council’s investigation teams, most of these weapons were made in Iran.
Do large industrial nations and the Arab Gulf countries realize the dangers of these threats and understand that the security needs of Yemen go hand in hand with the protection of international shipping lanes and the prevention of weapons proliferation in the region? At any rate, Yemen can’t allow itself to be a bridge or a springboard for those who try to inflict damage on brothers and friends under any circumstances, but we hope that the Gulf Cooperation Council realizes that Yemen is the southern gateway for its members.
To learn more about maritime security issues go to our online edition to read “Patrolling Chokepoints – Naval forces counter threats to navigation and infrastructure,” written by Unipath guest authors Dr. Theodore Karasik and Nadine Mazraani of the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis. https://unipath-magazine.com