Somali pirates pocket at least $1.67 million

The dollar total is for only one of the ships. The figure for the second is unknown. Earlier this week, another chemical tanker was released for $2.5 million. Owners of the oil tanker taken on Saturday are currently in negotiations.

This is sure to discourage pirates.

Murdoc votes we tell ship owners that we’re all pulling our naval assets from the area if they make payments.

India sinks suspected pirate mother ship

An Indian naval vessel sank a suspected pirate “mother ship” in the Gulf of Aden and chased two attack boats into the night, officials said Wednesday, as separate bands of brigands seized Thai and Iranian ships in the lawless seas.

A multinational naval force has increased patrols in the waters between the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa, where pirates have grown bolder and more violent. The force scored a rare success Tuesday when the Indian warship, operating off the coast of Oman, stopped a ship similar to a pirate vessel described in numerous bulletins. The Indian navy said the pirates fired on the INS Tabar after the officers asked to search it.

“Pirates were seen roaming on the upper deck of this vessel with guns and rocket propelled grenade launchers,” said a statement from the Indian navy. Indian forces fired back, sparking fires and a series of onboard blasts — possibly due to exploding ammunition — and destroying the ship.

They chased one of two speedboats shadowing the larger ship. One was later found abandoned. The other escaped, according to the statement.

US scientist pleads guilty to China tech sales

A scientist pleaded guilty Monday to selling U.S. rocket technology to China and bribing Chinese officials to secure a lucrative contract for his high-tech company.

Bad. How could an American do such a thing? Must be the evils of capitalism and greed. Or maybe it’s a bit more than that:

Quan-Sheng Shu, 68, pleaded guilty to two counts of violating the federal Arms Control Act and one count of bribery at a hearing in U.S. District Court in Norfolk.

Shu is president of AMAC International Inc. of Newport News. He is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Shanghai.

Meanwhile:

Russian spy in Nato could have passed on missile defence and cyber-war secrets:

Herman Simm, 61, an Estonian defence ministry official who was arrested in September, was responsible for handling all of his country’s classified information at Nato, giving him access to every top-secret graded document from other alliance countries.

He was recruited by the Russians in the late 1980s and has been charged in Estonia with supplying information to a foreign power.

Australia temporarily shuts down navy

This sound like something out of The Onion:

CANBERRA, Australia – Australia’s navy gets a big Christmas gift this year: two months paid vacation for most sailors that will ease the effects of a recruiting slump but make the service Down Under look something like a part-time operation.

The navy hopes that by making life on the sea more family-friendly, it will attract the extra 2,000 sailors it needs achieve its target strength of 15,000.

All ships and subs not on operational deployments will be recalled to port and the personnel, apart from a “skeleton crew” for security will be given extra time off. Apparently there is usually some sort of a break at this time of the year.

Neil James, executive director of the independent security think-tank Australian Defense Association, agreed the shutdown was not radically different from previous years, although it was a few weeks longer and would involve more ships remaining in dock.

More ships for longer. Sounds pretty different to me.

If the only way to recruit more people is to turn off the navy for two months out of every year, what’s the point of recruiting more people?

The K11:

Im chung-bin the the chief of staff of ROKA examines new South korean double barreled rifle K-11 in ground weapon conference.2008.11.11 Daejeun South korea This rifle uses 20mm airburst ammunition and 5.56mm NATO. 20mm launcher operates as bolt action and use 5 round mag. This weapon will be fielded in next year.

Like the XM29 OICW, it appears to weigh a ton.

Cross-posted from GunPundit.

Red Storm Rising

In Tom Clancy’s Red Storm Rising, a key plotline was the taking of Iceland by the Soviets and the effort to re-open the GIUK Gap by NATO forces, including some US personnel that escaped the Soviet attack. Thanks to a “force reduction” in 2006, US forces pulled out and now the Russians might be moving in. Unfortunately, Murdoc’s Icelandic is a bit rusty, so we’ll have to rely on Alert 5:

Iceland offers strategic airbase to Russia

Icelandic President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson shocked foreign diplomats at a lunch in Reykjavik on Nov. 7 when he offered the former Naval Air Station Keflavik to Russia.

Grimsson said that his country needs “new friends” and that Russia should be invited to use the former NATO airbase.

If this goes through, it will be disastrous for us. I expect that we’ll be making a counter-offer shortly. Which might be the whole point of offering it to the Russians.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski says Obama assured him the plans for US ballistic missile defense in Poland were on track. Obama refuses to say he’s committed to it. Is that a problem?

Environmental Republican:

So here we are with Obama telling a world leader one thing and the public another, very much like his statements on NAFTA during the election where he slammed the treaty on the campaign trail while simultaneously winking at the Canucks and saying it was just for the consumption of the gullible American electorate.

But this is not Canada, this is Russia, the former Soviet Union, the Bear who was our enemy for decades and who will be again soon.

As Environmental Republican says, this was a tough deal for Kaczynski to get through. Poland sure has stepped up to the plate for us over and over again. We haven’t always done everything we could or should in return.

Taliban hijack NATO convoy in Pakistan

Captured Humvee

At least 13 container trucks of NATO supplies were jacked in the Khyber Pass region by about 60 Pashtun Taliban. A US Humvee was also captured and later paraded for cameras. Around 70% of the supplies for US and NATO in Afghanistan come through this region.

Pakistani truckers say the government is powerless to stop the attacks. “The government is a silent spectator,” the owner of a trucking company that transports supplies through Khyber told Reuters. “[The Taliban] attack our trucks, loot them and kill our drivers in broad daylight, even near security checkposts, but [the military] can’t do anything.”

Today’s hijacking occurred one day after the US military killed eight Taliban fighters during hot pursuit from Afghanistan into Khyber. A Khyber-based extremist group called the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice said its forces battled the Afghan military before retreating into Pakistan.

Read more about the previous day’s incident here.

A French Operational Mentor and Liaison Team soldier provides security during a patrol, Nov. 6, 2008. The French are helping the International Security Assistance Force in assisting the Afghan government in extending and exercising its authority and influence across the country, creating the conditions for stabilization and reconstruction. (Photographer: Cpl. John Rafoss : International Security Assistance Force HQ Public Affairs)

From MP. Lots more international force pictures at the link.

The Firearms Blog has more info and pictures.