Updated on Thursday, November 20, 2008, 00:00 IST

New York, Nov 20: UN chief Ban Ki-moon has extended strong support to the Indian Navy’s efforts to sink pirate ‘mother ship’ on the high seas some 300 nautical miles off the coast of Oman. He further backed the efforts by member states to fight the scourge.

Condemning the acts of piracy and armed robbery at sea wherever they occur, Ban said that he is working closely with Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG), the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the European Union and others to ensure that international efforts to combat piracy are better co-ordinated.

"He welcomes the EU's decision to authorise the deployment of a maritime force off the coast of Somalia, and the efforts of individual Member States to send vessels, which will strengthen security in the area," his spokesperson said.

Later this week, IMO Secretary-General Efthimios Mitropoulos is expected to brief the Security Council on the latest developments in the waters of the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean off the Horn of Africa.

Naval escorts from the Netherlands and NATO are providing vital protection for UN World Food Programme (WFP) ships loaded with aid for Somalia, where millions depend on humanitarian aid because of conflict, drought and soaring food and fuel prices, the UN said.

Bureau Report