China major-general urges navy to fight Somali pirates 04 Dec 2008 08:19:16 GMT
Source: Reuters
BEIJING, Dec 4 (Reuters) - China should send naval ships to help wipe out Somali pirates menacing commercial vessels off Africa, a prominent Chinese military strategist said, urging his nation to take a higher profile in such operations.
Major-General Jin Yinan's comments may reflect growing debate about combating the rising piracy in a country which has generally confined its growing naval strength to waters near home.
Jin told a Chinese radio interviewer that "nobody should be shocked" if his government one day decided to send navy ships to deal with the pirates, whose recent victims have included ships from mainland China and Hong Kong.
"With China as a major world economy, it's very difficult to say that security problems across the world have nothing to do with us," Jin said in the interview reprinted by the China News Service (
), an official agency, on Thursday.
Jin, head of a strategy institute at China's National Defence University, gave no sign that such naval action was under imminent consideration. But he said China's growing clout made it increasingly likely that the government would use its forces in security operations far from home.
"I believe the Chinese navy should send naval vessels to the Gulf of Aden to carry out anti-piracy duties," he said. "If one day, the Chinese navy sends ships to deal with pirates, nobody should be shocked."
A surge in attacks at sea this year in the busy Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean off Somalia has pushed up insurance costs, brought the Somali gangs tens of millions of dollars in ransom and prompted foreign warships to the area.
The victims have included a Hong Kong-flagged ship with 25 crew aboard and a Chinese fishing boat reported seized off Kenya.
On Tuesday, the U.N. Security Council renewed its authorisation for countries to use military force against the gunmen operating out of anarchic Somalia.
NATO ships began anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast in late October, but they have failed to stop the hijackings.
Jin, a frequent commentator in Chinese media, said the country's lack of military bases abroad should not rule out anti-piracy operations. National pride was at stake, he said.
"If we don't take effective action, how will they see us abroad, and how will Chinese people view their government?", he said. (Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Nick Macfie)
