The year 2019 marked a crucial milestone in the fight against global maritime piracy. According to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), global pirate attacks plunged to a 25-year low, with piracy on large ships of over 100GT (gross tonnage) plunging to just 41 , or more than a 50% decline on the rolling 10-year average of 95. Notably, zero cases were recorded in the notorious Gulf of Aden off the Somali coast, once considered the deadliest piracy hotspot anywhere on the planet. But now, the Covid-19 pandemic and floating oil storage boom are threatening to reverse that trend. According to the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery (ReCAAP), attacks have returned to the Gulf of Mexico , a key floating storage hub where oil producers have been anchoring their excess inventories during the oil supply glut. Alarmingly, maritime security officials have also reported that piracy in […]