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Deployment of SL Navy advanced offshore patrol vessel to the Red Sea still under discussion
The proposed deployment of a Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) advanced offshore patrol vessel (AOPV) to the Red Sea in support of the US-led mission against attacks on commercial ships by Yemen-based Houthi rebels is still under discussion.
No date has been confirmed for the deployment, Navy Spokesman Captain Gayan Wickramasuriya told the Sunday Times. An extended deployment in international waters is not unusual however, as the SLN has sent its AOPVs on such missions before, he said.
The Navy currently has five AOPVs. They are the SLNS Sayurala, Sindurala, Parakramabahu, Gajabahu and Vijayabahu.
Speaking during the “Shilpa Abhimani 2023” awards ceremony on Wednesday, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka was ready to deploy a naval vessel to the Red Sea to protect commercial ships from Houthi attacks. He said it would cost about Rs. 250 million to send one such vessel for a fortnight but that the impact on Sri Lanka’s economy if the attacks continued would be worse.
“Anything that happens in the Red Sea has a direct impact on our economy and livelihoods,” State Minister of Defence Premitha Bandara Tennakoon told the Sunday Times. He noted that Sri Lanka is also part of the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF).
Headquartered in Bahrain, the CMF is a 39-nation coalition whose stated goal is to counter illicit non-state actors on the high seas and ensure security and stability across approximately 3.2 million squaremiles of international waters, which includes some of the world’s most important shipping lanes.
Yemen-based Houthi rebels, who are allegedly backed by Iran, started attacking commercial ships late last year following the breakout of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. The movement says it is attacking vessels linked to Israel in support of Palestinians.
Coordinated by the CMF, “Operation Prosperity Guardian” was launched in December to safeguard commercial shipping from Houthi attacks. The US-led mission, however, has been troubled from the beginning with only a few nations contributing vessels while others have sent personnel.
“We are for freedom of navigation and we have a global responsibility,” State Minister Tennakoon said, when asked why Sri Lanka was thinking of sending a naval vessel. He said the government was looking to make “a significant contribution” to the mission.
The Houthi rebels have proved to be a potent military force, possessing advanced weaponry including anti-ship missiles and explosive laden drones. When Houthi fighters hijacked the container vessel MVGalaxy Leader in the Red Sea last November, the movement released video of heavily armed fighters being dropped onto the vessel’s deck from a helicopter.
“There are risks, but that does not mean we can dodge the responsibility. The armed forces understand that and calculate the risks,” said Mr Tennakoon.
On Wednesday, the governments of 13 nations warned the Houthis that there will be “consequences” if they continued their attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea.
In their joint statement, the governments of Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, the United Kingdom and United States, described the ongoing Houthi attacks in the Red Sea as “illegal, unacceptable, and profoundly destabilising.” They added that there is “no lawful justification for intentionally targeting civilian shipping and naval vessels.”
The Houthis, however, have been defiant. The US Navy said on Thursday that an explosive-laden drone boat had exploded in the RedSea, though it did not cause casualties.
In the face of continued attacks, many shipping lines are now choosing to divert around the Cape of Good Hope in Southern Africa instead of going through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea. This adds additional time of between 7 to 10 days, a senior shipping industry insider said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“If, for instance, a vessel from Colombo goes to Rotterdam in 18 days, now it’s going to take 28 days. There is also additional cost to the shipping line of fuel, bunkering and others for each voyage. These ships are very large ships, so you have an impact not only on fuel but also on the operating cost of the ship,” the source noted.
“Chartering a vessel of this size costs you between USD 80, 000-90, 000 a day. When the shipping line has to incur this, obviously, they have to pass it down to the customers as they otherwise can’t sustain themselves,” said the insider.
Shipping lines have already imposed an additional surcharge of between USD 1000-1500 per container as an emergency surcharge dueto the diversion, according to the source. Overall, there is also going to bean increase in the freight rates.
“When the freight rates go up, it’s going to affect the cost of moving goods. Exporters and importers will have to bear a higher freight rate. That is going to increase their cost of movement of cargo, which will affect prices. Additionally, the delays in movement of goods will also impact the market situation,” he further said.
“Input cost volatility is beyond our control and we can only mitigate its impact by rapidly implementing storage and pipeline projects in Trincomalee, Muthurajawela, Kolonnawa and Sapugaskanda, accumulating forex reserves in order to improve commercial terms we can offer suppliers, and broad-basing our supply chain,” Ceylon Petroleum Corporation(CPC) Chairman Saliya Wickramasuriya told the Sunday Times when asked whether continued attacks in the Red Sea will impact local fuel prices further.
Meanwhile, several local companies continue to provide logistical services to sea marshals from registered Private Maritime Security Companies (PMSCs). Weapons, ammunition and other accessories of these PMSCs are stored at armouries in the Ports of Colombo and Galle. The armouries are run as a joint venture between Avant-Garde Maritime Services and Rakna Arakshaka Lanka, which is a fully-owned state entity under the purview of the Ministry of Defence. The armouries are monitored and supervised by the Sri Lanka Navy.
Logistical facilities such as immigration and Port Authority clearance, land and sea transport services and hotel accommodation for the sea marshals are provided by these companies said Kanchana Silva, Managing Director of Acrus Shipping (Pvt) Ltd, which provides various shipping services to companies at all four of the country’s ports. Once their weapons and equipment have been issued under supervision of the navy, the sea marshals embark on their designated vessels at rendezvous points Outside Port Limits(OPLs) in Galle as well as ports when vessels are at berth.
Local sea marshals, who are ex-military personnel, are also provided to PMSCs for their Onboard Security Task Forces (OBST) and Acrus too provides such sea marshals on request, said Mr Silva.
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