Armed Forces Journal – Europe steps up piracy controls

The European Union launched its first naval operation to combat piracy off the Somali coast, dubbed “Operation Atalanta,” on Dec 8, 2008. Its one-year mission is to “take the necessary measures, including the use of force, to deter, prevent and intervene” to end acts of piracy and armed robbery in an area up to 1,000 kilometers off the coasts of Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania, and in the Gulf of Aden.