Improving Security in the Western Indian Ocean

The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) published on 23 May 2018 an analysis titled "From Djibouti to Jeddah, the Western Indian Ocean Needs Security" by Christian Bueger, Cardiff University, and Timothy Walker, ISS.

Twenty littoral countries in southern and eastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula adopted in 2009 the original Djibouti Code of Conduct that deals with maritime security threats. In 2017, they added the Jeddah Amendments. The guidelines now cover piracy, trafficking of arms and narcotics, illegal wildlife trade, illegal oil bunkering and theft, human trafficking and smuggling, and the illegal dumping of toxic waste. The issue now is how to move from declarations of intent to effective action. In addition, three key states--India, Pakistan and Iran--are not members of the amended Djibouti Code of Conduct.