Pirates Shift Focus From Somalia To West Africa

05:24

August 05, 2013

A crew of U.S. sailors and Nigerian special forces fighters engages in training exercise off the Nigerian coast in 2010. The U.S. Navy offered training to the Nigerian navy as worries mount of increasingly violent pirate attacks along the West African coast. (Jon Gambrell/AP)

West African leaders have called for the deployment of an international naval force to curb the growing threat of piracy off the Gulf of Guinea.

Piracy in the region needed to be tackled with "firmness," Ivory Coast's President Alassane Ouattara said at a meeting of regional leaders.

There are now more pirate attacks off West Africa than off Somalia, maritime groups said last week. Patrols by foreign warships are credited with reducing attacks by Somali pirates.

BBC: West Africa Seeks Anti-Piracy Force

Reporter

Mike Thomson, BBC foreign affairs correspondent. He tweet @ThomsonRadio.

This segment aired on August 5, 2013.