US Marines – The Marines in Liberia have returned to their ships, their mission ashore accomplished for the moment.

• Associated Press: U.S. Marines Return to Ships Off Liberia
• CNN: 150 Marines leave Liberia

Al Qaeda’s “Navy” – Estimates as to number of merchant ship available to al Qaeda varies from a low of a dozen to as many as 50. Assessing their numbers is complicated by the extensive use of ‘flags of convenience’ by maritime trade, in which vessels, often owned by Western companies, are registered overseas to avoid stringent safety standards and other regulations routinely imposed by the U.S. and Western European countries. Just how big a threat is posed by al Qaeda’s ‘Navy,’ and what measures have been put in place to counter this?

• Center for Defense Information: Al Qaeda’s ‘Navy’ – How Much of a Threat?

Background – What the US is looking for in Allies – She may look like G.I. Jane, but Defense Minister Kristin Krohn Devold has made her country’s military the model for small nations that want a meaningful role in world affairs.

• New York Times Magazine: Who’s Afraid of Norway?