Lebanon needs better boats to patrol waters on its own – UN naval chief
Small Lebanese vessels unable to stay at sea in bad weather
The Lebanese Navy does not have the boats it needs to police its maritime border effectively, the commander of the United Nations naval contingent said on Thursday.
Speaking to The Daily Star on board the French frigrate Latouche Treville, Rear Admiral Alain Hinden said that while Lebanese naval personnel were trained well enough to enforce security on their seaboard, their boats were unable to sail in rough weather.
"The ships they have are too small," he said. "If the sea becomes rough it”s hard for them to go. They have quick boats, well educated officers – it”s not a question of personnel."
The Lebanese Navy”s lack of large warships means that it is reliant on the UN to help properly police the country”s maritime border. Ships like the Latouche Treville are able to sail whatever the weather, using specialized equipment to build a complete picture of other boats in the surrounding area.
With 240 crew working shifts, the boat is manned 24 hours a day and can stay at sea for weeks without calling into port. There is even a bakery on board to keep the French crew supplied with fresh baguettes. In contrast, the Lebanese Navy possesses only smaller vessels, which cannot be used in high seas.
Hinden emphasized that despite their superior equipment, the UN Maritime Task Force (MTF) works only in a support capacity to the Lebanese Navy, providing them with information about shipping in Lebanese coastal waters. "We are not responsible for the border," he said. "We are just in support of Lebanese authorities. We work with them so that the maritime picture is well known. When we detect suspect activity, we tell the Lebanese authorities."
The MTF is the first naval mission ever deployed by the UN and is tasked with ensuring that no weapons are smuggled into Lebanon. The arrival of the task force in October 2006 ended a three-month blockade of Lebanese ports implemented by Israeli warships during the July war. Since then, almost 20,000 merchant vessels have been hailed by UN”s boats, and those that are deemed suspicious have been searched by Lebanese authorities.
The force has never identified a case of weapons smuggling, but Hinden says that its role is preventive. "Our mission is low intensity and continuous," he says. "We have not intercepted a merchant vessel with thousands of weapons." But he said the presence of the warships alone was enough to put off any would be smugglers. "Everyone knows that they will be detected and identified," he said. He points to precedent of the Karine A, a merchant vessel found loaded with 50 tons of weapons allegedly bound for Hizbullah”s armed wing in early 2002 as evidence that naval smuggling could be an issue in the region if the seas are not properly policed.
The MTF has at least five ships permanently at sea in its area of operations, which extend beyond Lebanese territory into international waters. Ships like Latouche Treville are equipped to monitor all merchant vessels, as well as submarine and airborne activity.
Crew on board say they have never come across a submarine in Lebanese waters.
While acknowledging that Israel violates resolution 1701 by flying its aircraft in Lebanese airspace, Hinden says the Israeli navy has respected Lebanese territorial waters until now.
"There have been no violations by the Israeli navy," he said. "I”m quite sure they would never do that."
He said if another war broke out, the mandate governing the UN warships would no longer be valid and they would need new rules of engagement to prevent another Israeli naval blockade of Lebanon. "The present situation under the current mandate is to help the Lebanese Navy control its territorial waters," he said.
Information about shipping is gathered by the 11 UN ships that make up the MTF and is transmitted to the Lebanese authorities, who use it complete a picture of shipping in the area provided by six new radar stations that monitor maritime traffic off the Lebanese coast.
The UN also train Lebanese military personnel in the techniques they need to carry out effective sea border control. The aim is that one day Lebanon will be in sole control of its maritime border.
Hinden says that is it is not inconceivable that in the future Israel would trust the Lebanese Navy to carry out the anti-smuggling operations without UN support. "The inspections are carried out by the Lebanese Navy," he said. "So the confidence comes from one state, Israel, to another state, Lebanon."
He said the MTF”s training role was important for the time when Lebanon will control its sea border without the help of the UN ships, something which he insists is a realistic ambition. "We hope that they [the Lebanese Navy] will be able to assume responsibility for their territorial waters. That can be done – it”s not only a dream."