A South Korean warship has begun its voyage to Somali waters to join international efforts to fight piracy in the region, marking the first dispatch of the nation's warship since the navy was created 64 years ago. The 4,500-ton Munmu the Great destroyer with a crew of 300 is expected to reach its destination in about three weeks after departing from the Jinhae naval base in South Gyeongsang Province last Friday.
The mission shows that South Korea, the world's 13th largest economy, is willing to play a bigger role in protecting fishing and cargo vessels and their crew from Somali bandits, certainly contributing to not only enhancing maritime safety but also promoting world peace. The Korean navy may take part in multinational antiterrorism operations in the pirate-infested waters of the Indian Ocean off Somalia.
There is no question that such a mission will open a new horizon for the Korean navy as well as the nation. We cannot overemphasize the importance of the military's role of protecting Korean citizens and their properties at home and abroad. The dispatch reflects growing concerns that Somali pirates will continue to prey on Korean ships and their crewmembers.
Many people still vividly remember the hijacking of Korean vessels by Somali pirates, including the tuna fishing ship Dongwon with 25 crewmembers who were released in return for ransom after 117 days of captivity in 2006. In November 2007, two other fishing boasts, Mabuno No. 1 and No. 2, were also hijacked, with their crew held for 174 days. Pirates also seized the 15,000-ton bulk carrier Bright Ruby, holding eight Koreans and 13 Myanmarese in captivity for 36 days.
These incidents have not allowed the Seoul government to just sit on its hands, getting approval from the National Assembly to send a warship to the area to join Britain, France, Russia and others in their fight against pirates. Some critics opposed the dispatch, claiming that a ship alone can do little to guarantee the safety of Korean vessels in the wilderness of the sea.
However, it can serve as the first step to extend the navy's operational range to the faraway ocean, which is critical to Korea's foreign trade. More than a quarter of the nation's maritime cargoes pass through the Indian Ocean, where there are heavily traveled sea-lanes for traffic between the Middle East, Europe and Asia. The Gulf of Aden is an especially vital route for South Korea, bringing 70 percent of crude oil from the Middle East. About 460 Korean vessels travel the gulf each year.
We hope that the dispatched ``Cheonghae" unit consisting of the destroyer, a Lynx antisubmarine helicopter and a speedboat will successfully accomplish its mission. In addition, the Lee Myung-bak administration ought to expand the nation's peacekeeping operations to help settle peace in disputed areas around the world.