Rescue off Somalia prompts calls for action

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The dramatic rescue of U.S. cargo ship captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates on Sunday fueled calls for aggressive action to stop attacks off the Horn of Africa, including the arming of merchant vessels.

Others called for called for changes to international law that would make it easier to pursue and try pirates.

"We remain resolved to halt the rise of piracy in this region," President Barack Obama said in a written statement after the rescue.

"To achieve that goal, we must continue to work with our partners to prevent future attacks, be prepared to interdict acts of piracy and ensure that those who commit acts of piracy are held accountable for their crimes," he said.

The U.S. Navy ended the five-day ordeal of Richard Phillips, captain of the Maersk Alabama cargo ship, by killing three pirates who held him captive on a lifeboat. A fourth pirate was taken into custody.

Phillips was the first American taken captive in a wave of piracy that is rampant off the Horn of Africa, where Somali civil conflict has let the practice flourish for nearly two decades in an atmosphere of poverty and lawlessness.

"We've got to figure out a way in an international community to ... arm the crews, increase the number of warships that are there on scene (and) reduce the abilities of the Somalis to have ships that are anchored off the coast in a safe haven," Adm. Rick Gurnon, president of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy where Phillips was trained, told a news conference.

ARMING CREWS UNPOPULAR WITH SHIPPING COMPANIES

A military operation may be needed to clear out the pirate bases on land, he said, "I think the international community needs to seriously look at that."

Republican U.S. Senator Tom Coburn said, "we're going to have to be much more aggressive" against pirates. Speaking on "Fox News Sunday," he said "a tremendous increase in resources" would be needed and other countries must share the burden.

U.S. military officials expressed caution.

U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Thad Allen said arming crews remains unpopular with shipping companies, who are concerned about liability or an arms race with pirates.

"That's not what these mariners are trained to do," Allen said shortly before the rescue on ABC television's "This Week."

He called instead for new international legal agreements to fight piracy, which often involves multiple questions of national jurisdiction.

"What you really have to have is a coordinating mechanism that ultimately brings these pirates to court," Allen said.

The U.N. Security Council over last year authorized navies to chase pirates into Somalia's territorial waters and later allowed land operations against pirate havens.

The United States, Britain and the European Union have struck agreements with Kenya for prosecuting captured pirates there, but Kenya has warned that it cannot be the only place for trials.

Vice Admiral William Gortney, head of the U.S. Naval Central Command, said the successful U.S. strike could possibly escalate violence. He said the conditions that give rise to piracy -- failed governments, lawlessness and poverty -- must be wiped out to end the threat.

"The ultimate solution to piracy is on land," Gortney said in a Pentagon briefing from Bahrain.

(Editing by Alan Elsner)