Somali Pirates Seize Dutch Boat with 8 Crew: Group

Last year, though, was the worst on record for Somali piracy with 42 boats taken.

Analysts say the presence of several dozen warships, from the United States, Europe, China, Japan and others, has had a limited success, bringing some captures but also pushing the pirates into a wider zone of operations.

"Navies have had some success in their primary aim of disrupting piratical activity, and the success rate for pirate attacks has dropped from around one in three to about one in four," said expert Roger Middleton, of the Chatham House think tank.

All analysts agree, however, that the only long-term solution is to bring peace onshore to Somalia, which has suffered civil conflict since 1991.

"Naval or police action cannot provide any long-term solution to piracy in Somalia," Middleton added in a paper.

Another Somalia expert, Ken Menkhaus, concurred with that in his analysis of the piracy phenomenon.

"The Somali piracy epidemic is unquestionably an onshore crisis demanding an onshore solution," he said.

"Naval operations to interdict and apprehend pirates will help, but cannot possibly halt the daily quest of over a thousand gunmen in such vast waters when the risks are so low, rewards so high and alternatives so bleak in desolate Somalia."

reuters.com