The Gulf of Aden has been on fire again with US SEALS to the rescue of Captain Phillips of the Maersk  Alabama from Somali pirates.  Chris Brewer, CEO of US based Ashler International bores down into the issue by addressing the technical options and strategic adaptations which may be considered in resolving the issue.  Within the  last week NATO forces, under Dutch flag,  have intervened in yet another hijacking.  The bleeding continues.  Hard thinking in Brussels is certainly on the table for the world’s most successful collective security organization. 

Elsewhere around the world the Journal of Energy Security (JES) covers issues from India, Venezuela, and the Middle East making this issue perhaps the most geographically diverse  to date. We also offer a cutting edge article on the potential of using thorium as an alternative nuclear fuel; an issue not likely to please everyone but one that should be carefully considered by anyone dedicated to energy and resource diversification. 

News noteworthy on the global  front was the opening of the Ras a Laffan LNG facility in Qatar which will ultimately provide the UK with 20% of future natural gas needs.  Phillip Cornell at the NATO School is also hard at work on new strategic thinking on the Far North , and we hope to be bringing you several articles on Gulf developments over the coming months.  In closing where there is quiet there is often a storm brewing-this time in the Russian Federation as it limps towards some very difficult decisions to replace domestic natural gas power generation with coal.  As always, the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security and its staff are monitoring these developments carefully. 

Best Regards, Kevin Rosner, Managing Editor, JES

editor@iags.org