Making Stovepipes Work
By Captain Brian Wilson, U.S. Navy (Retired)
A plan implemented in 2006 brought unified U.S. responses to transnational maritime threats. It provides a template for interagency cooperation as such threats expand in scope and complexity.
A pirate attack in the Gulf of Aden was imminent when the crew of the MV Magellan Star retreated to a secure room, or citadel, on board their ship and sent distress messages. Within 24 hours, U.S. Marines boarded and regained control of the Antigua-Barbuda-flagged container ship without a shot being fired. 1 That U.S operation in 2010 was remarkably successful: The Magellan Star crew of 11 was safe, and the Somalis who attacked the vessel were detained.
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Captain Wilson is deputy director of the Global Maritime Operational Threat Response Coordination Center, and an adjunct professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. His service on active duty for 21 years included posts in the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63), at the Pentagon, and in Antarctica. He also commanded Region Legal Service Office, Naval District Washington, and was Oceans Policy adviser to the Under Secretary of Defense (Policy).
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