The head of the U.S. military's Africa Command, or Africom, General William Wardsaid that he had no evidence of ties between al-Qaida and Somali pirates, but that the possibility would be a cause for concern.
, who is Nairobi for meetings with Kenyan officials, said the United States is concerned about the rise in piracy, and is involved in multilateral efforts to provide security, but that the issue is not a primary focus for Africom.
"The United States is participating in those activities currently, but again, that is not specifically being controlled by the United States Africa Command," he said.
Ward said Africom's main objectives involve building African military capacity and strengthening security cooperation between the United States and African countries. He said that piracy was a criminal matter, and that legal rules have to be followed in pursuing pirates.
Some of eight suspected Somali pirates when they appeared before the Mombasa, Kenya, Chief Magistrate, 19 Nov 2008
Some of eight suspected Somali pirates when they appeared before the Mombasa, Kenya, Chief Magistrate, 19 Nov 2008
"Piracy is a very complex issue. I don't know if you would ever have enough vessels to have coverage of the entire ocean," he said.
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