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Pirate Attacks, Summer 2011 West Africa Benin: Product tanker hijacked during transfer operations, September 14. Benin: Chemical tanker hijacked, during ship-to-ship (STS) transfer, August 20. Nigeria: Passenger ship boarding, August 27. Gulf of Guinea: Tanker attempted boarding, July 30. Red Sea Tanker boarded, September 10. LPG tanker fired upon, August 12. Bulk carrier boarded, August 11. Indian Ocean-East Africa Gulf of Aden: Sailing vessel hijacked, September 8. Gulf of Aden: Container ship rocket-propelled grenade attack, August 23. Gulf of Aden: Chemical tanker fired upon, August 21. Gulf of Aden: Cargo ship fired upon, August 9. Arabian Sea: Chemical tanker hijacked, August 20. Maritime Crimes, Summer 2011 West Africa Togo: Chemical Tanker attempted boarding, September 14. Congo: Container Ship boarded, August 7. Congo: Container Ship boarded, August 1. Southeast Asia Indonesia: Chemical tanker boarded and robbed, September 9. Indonesia: Tanker robbed, August 27. Indonesia: Bulk carrier robbed, August 20. Indonesia: Chemical tanker boarded, August 12. Singapore: Tanker boarded and robbed during STS transfer, September 8. Singapore: Petroleum tanker robbed, August 26. South China Sea: Tug boarded and robbed, August 6. Malaysia: Tug and barge boarded and robbed, August 11. Bangladesh: Cargo ship boarded and robbed, July 29. South and Central America Ecuador: Chemical tanker robbed, August 19. Colombia: Chemical tanker attempted boarding, August 4. All statistics from the Office of Naval Intelligence "Worldwide Threats to Shipping Report," which contains a summary of recent piracy acts and hostile actions against commercial shipping worldwide, organized by geographic region. common and criminal tactics can include shootings and/or machete attacks, which can result in death or severe injury. The IMO and the U.N. have made great strides since the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 1982. Currently, there is more reporting on acts of piracy in the maritime domain, and efforts to assist member states continues to strengthen the laws associated with the criminalization of piracy and maritime crimes. Unfortunately, nations that are unable to patrol their waters or prosecute criminals are often subject to the growth or shift of pirate and criminal networks to their respective regions. For those entities tracking these events, changes in the funding or strength of member state governments are often signals of new vulnerabilities in regions already dealing with reported incidents. Regardless of organization, funding, or modus ope- randi, the difference between a pirate and a criminal is not their ties, but the location of each attack. There- fore, not all pirates are well-funded and organized. 0DULWLPH FULPLQDOV KRZHYHU FRXOG ÀW WKH GHVFULS- tion as easily as pirates. Globally, piracy and mari- time crime must be viewed through a similar lens, but the small differences can be vexing. Each incident must be viewed individually to accurately attribute the action to either piracy or maritime crime, because each label carries different methods of prosecution and sentencing. About the author: Mrs. Geisert serves with the U.S. Coast Guard as a member of the 'HSDUWPHQW RI +RPHODQG 6HFXULW\·V 2IÀFH RI ,QWHOOLJHQFH DQG $QDO- ysis. She had received the Secretary's Award for Exemplary Service for her work in analysis. Previously, she has worked for the Environ- mental Protection Agency and members of the U.S. Congress. Bibliography: "United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea," http://www.un.org IMO conventions, http://www.imo.org. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency "Worldwide Threats to Shipping Reports," http://msi.nga.mil. http://www.icc-ccs.org/piracy-reporting-centre 34 Proceedings Spring 2012 www.uscg.mil/proceedings