March 2007 - Eitzen group

Ship - target or tool?By Kaushik Roy, EMS Ship Management, EdinburghSecurity is an important issue of thiscentury. Among transport modes, shippingpresents the highest security risksince, on the one hand, it is the mainfacilitator of international trade and, onthe other hand, a terrorism-targetedship, whether a passenger or cargo carrier,poses a major threat in terms ofloss of human life and property, as wellas the threat of damage to the environment.Shipping is particularly vulnerableto terrorism, either as a direct target orindirectly as a service provider or tool.Target options in terms of numbers, e.g.major stock exchanges are multiple targetsbut still limited in number whileships are almost infinite. In terms ofsecurity, stock exchanges are well protected,whereas the ships, either at opensea or in coastal waters, are not secured.Also ships are very easy target fromhuge numbers available.In terms of geographic area impact,from a terrorist viewpoint, the larger thebetter. Thus, a successful attack on anuclear plant, assuming a radiationspread such as was the case atChernobyl, would have a regional if notnational impact while a successful attackon oil, chemical or gas tankers in themiddle of Singapore Strait or DoverStrait would have great national andinternational impact.Damage to the target and national economywould also be a consideration withrespect to a terrorist's list of possibletargets. Explosion on a cruise ship orgas carrier might seem local in geographicimpact and the economic lossrelatively small, the financial impact onthe shipping industry would be profound.A successful attack on the cruiseship would have consequences fargreater including political/psychologicalimpact than the damage to the shipitself.Casualties would rank high in targetselection. The successful attack on theWorld Trade Center and Pentagon, withcasualties in the thousands, caused anational trauma, the effects of whichwill continue for years. The same will berepeated if a large passenger ship isexploded, where thousands of peoplefrom various nations will die.The political and psychological impactof a successful terrorist attack is perhapsthe most important of all considerationsas noticed in US Navy vesselUSS Cole in 2000, leaving 17 sailorsdead and one of the most advancednaval vessels almost sunk. Terroristscould claim a major victory shouldAmericans or Britons lose faith in theirgovernment's ability to protect them.In terms of terrorist tools or weapons,shipping becomes most suitable for theillicit transport of terrorist weapons,from conventional explosives to unconventionalchemical, biological and radiologicalagents. The world has not experienceda major terrorist attack usingships or containers - at least not yet. Butit is clear that terrorists can see thepotential of using the maritime tradingsystem to conceal weapons or agents forattack purposes or to provide fundingor support for their operations.Terrorists have also used small, highspeedcraft, packed with conventionalexplosives several times in recent yearsto cause serious damage to, and deathson, much larger vessels. Large tankerscan be a major polluting threat to themarine and coastal environment. Thelarge scale of the imminent disaster havingthe corresponding publicity gainsfor the terrorists.Using flags of convenience, terroristcharteredor terrorist-owned arms carrierstransport weapon supplies to theirtheatres. These carriers are managed byterrorist front and cover companieslocated in the Western hemisphere andin the Far East. Some 90-95 per cent ofthe time, these registered carriersengage in perfectly legitimate commercialtrade. More than the lack ofstrength or expertise, it has been thelack of political courage that has impededstates from the interdiction of armsshipments for terrorist groups.Among the plethora of terrorist attacksin shipping, some of the ones that madehighlights are: the hijacking of theItalian cruise ship Achille Lauro in theMediterranean Sea, 1985; the grenadeblasting and gun firing on board theGreek cruiser City of Poros in the8 Eitzen News