Greece – 26th session of the IMO Assembly

“ The Government of Greece, representing one of the leading maritime nations attaches great importance to the economics of the shipping industry, in terms of cargo flows, supply and demand developments of the shipping market and financing. To deal with economic uncertainty and market volatility, a stable framework for the shipping industry is needed. And this framework is safeguarded and ensured only within the IMO. “

 

“Another challenging problem that the international shipping community has faced over the last years is piracy. Piracy acts and threats against the safety of crew members and vessels sailing, in particular, off the coasts of Somalia have created serious concerns. In this context, IMO initiatives should be stressed, above all the persistent efforts made under the leadership of the Secretary General regarding the IMO contribution to the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, the protection of vital sea lanes as well as issues related to piracy and armed robbery against vessels”

Estonia frets over Russia buying warship

Published: Nov. 22, 2009 at 4:57 PM

TALLINN, Estonia, Nov. 22 (UPI) — Estonian officials said that if Russia buys a French amphibious assault ship, Estonia should consider taking security measures.

The Mistral-class helicopter carrier ship, for which the French are asking between $600 to $700 million, is scheduled to arrive Monday in St. Petersburg for the Russian navy and defense industry experts to inspect, RIA Novosti reported Sunday.

Tajik rebels join al Qaeda

By Bill Roggio

November 23, 2009 10:49 PM

Members of a Tajik military unit that turned against the government a decade ago have have joined the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and al Qaeda.

An unknown number of fighters who were loyal to rebel leader Mahmud Khudoyberdiyev joined the regional and global terror groups and have been fighting the Tajik government, the deputy chief of the Tajik National Security Committee said at a regional forum held earlier this month.

A smart anti-terror force for Mumbai now

Meena Menon

It takes Force One 15 minutes to get ready and respond to a strike

— Photo: Vivek Bendre

Mock drill: Force One commandos demonstrate their skills during the Passing Out Parade of the first batch of 216 in Mumbai on Tuesday.

MUMBAI: The serenity of the sylvan State Reserve Police Force grounds in Goregaon is shattered by furious gunshots. Commandos clad in midnight blue and armed with MP5 submachine guns take positions behind a mock room.

Suddenly a youth with a backpack comes out of one of these “rooms,” screaming ‘surrender.’ As the commandos close in on him, he takes out a knife, but is overpowered.

Terror threat pushes Timbuktu on to UK travel blacklist

The threat of al-Qa’eda-linked terror attacks is now too great for British tourists to visit Timbuktu, the Foreign Office has warned.

By Mike Pflanz, West Africa Correspondent

Published: 10:42PM GMT 23 Nov 2009

The new travel advisory raised the threat in and around Mali‘s oft-quoted oasis town to “high” Photo: REUTERS

The new travel advisory raised the threat in and around Mali’s oft-quoted oasis town to “high” after a surge in kidnappings of Westerners by al-Qa’eda in the Islamic Maghreb (Aqim), a growing terror cell inspired by Osama bin Laden which is widening its reach across the unpoliced Sahara desert.

Smaller terror plots posing new threats

Two recent terrorism cases in the United States have officials worried that Al-Qaida is changing tactics.

By DAVID JOHNSTON and ERIC SCHMITT , New York Times

Last update: October 31, 2009 – 7:16 PM

WASHINGTON – After disrupting two recent terrorism plots, U.S. intelligence officials are increasingly concerned that extremist groups in Pakistan linked to Al-Qaida are planning smaller operations in the United States that are harder to detect but more likely to succeed than the spectacular attacks they once emphasized, senior counterterrorism officials say.

War crime tribunal weighs up next move as Karadzic refuses to appear

Published Date: 01 November 2009

By Nicholas Christian

RADOVAN Karadzic will be told this week whether or not his war crimes trial will proceed without him.

The former Bosnian Serb leader looks set to continue refusing to attend proceedings of the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague tomorrow.

That will force Judge O-Gon Kwon to schedule a special session on Tuesday to make

up his mind on whether to press ahead with prosecution in the absence of the lone accused.