Somali pirates are hanging tough even as American warships surround their load of tanks and weapons:
With U.S. warships lurking nearby, the pirates who hijacked an arms-laden Ukrainian tanker off Somalia threatened to destroy the vessel unless a ransom is paid, a spokesman for the bandits said.
Call the pirates' threat, if it is a bluff or not. Let's send a message by killing them all. Have the world's shipping companies, the Ukrainians, the Russians, the Kenyans, the world's insurance companies, and any other related party announce they will jointly cover the loss of the ship and its cargo, as well as the cost of cleaning up the wreckage..
And then have the naval force sitting there sink the ship and kill every pirate we find. That used to be standard operating procedure for navies.
The problem, of course, is the innocent crew that is held hostage on board the vessel. Whatever plan we have must have a good chance of rescuing them.
Still, an announcement of shared financial responsibility for the ship might give the pirates pause that their threats will work.
