Nov. 20 (Bloomberg) -- The seizure of a Saudi oil supertanker by Somali pirates may push Western navies to step up their actions against hijackers, military experts said.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is reassessing its operations in the region and may adopt a tougher stance toward the pirates. The navies of India, Russia, Britain and Germany have all battled pirate vessels in the Gulf of Aden in the last 10 days alone.

``This hijacking could really change the picture and we could see much more proactive rules of engagement,'' said Hans Tino Hansen, managing director of Risk Intelligence, a maritime security consultant based in Vedbaek, Denmark. ``The whole focus on the problem has exploded.''

The hijacked tanker, the Sirius Star, carrying a crew of 25 and 2 million barrels of crude valued at $110 million, was seized Nov. 15 about 420 nautical miles (833 kilometers) off Somalia. Saudi Arabia's state-owned shipping line, Vela International Marine Ltd., is in talks with the pirates on a ransom, Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said yesterday in Rome. The pirates are asking for $25 million to free the boat, one of the pirates, Abdi Salan, told Bloomberg News today.

NATO has a four-warship anti-piracy fleet off Somalia. India, Malaysia and Russia have sent warships, and a European Union fleet is expected to reach the zone next month. The U.S. coalition in Afghanistan has a task force in the area.

Russian Presence

Russia is likely to add to its one ship in the area, the Neustrashimy, or Intrepid, a navy spokesman said today.

In total, there are about 15 warships off the Somali coast, said Christophe Prazuck, a spokesman for the French military.

EU members agreed Nov. 10 to assemble an anti-piracy fleet, and nine countries so far have pledged ships or planes, which are expected to sail to the zone early December. ``The planning for the mission is underway and this recent attack is being worked into our thinking,'' Laurent Teisseire, spokesman for the French Defense Ministry, said at news conference today.

Germany's parliament, which must approve all overseas military missions, will vote this month or next on whether to join the EU mission, Social Democratic lawmaker Peter Struck told the Passauer Neue Presse.

In the U.S., the Pentagon has urged shipping companies to step up their own security provisions.

``It's incumbent upon the companies to look more and more at what they can do to try to prevent these incidents,'' Defense Department spokesman Geoff Morrell said yesterday. Possible measures include posting lookouts and investing in methods to keep pirates from boarding, he said.

Morrell added that U.S. diplomats are working at the United Nations to win renewal of a UN Security Council resolution, due to expire Dec. 2, that authorizes counter-piracy operations within the territorial waters of Somalia.

`Up and Running'

The seizure of an oil tanker could also convince countries in the region to send their own forces, said Tudor Ellis, maritime security expert at Drum Cussac, a London-based risk advisory company.

``Taking an Arab ship could turn against the pirates,'' Ellis said in a telephone interview. ``Yemen has been trying to get anti-piracy naval help from the Egyptians and Saudis, so far without much success. That could now change. We could see the Arab states get up and running.''

Saud al-Faisal, speaking in Athens, compared piracy to terrorism, saying it is ``a disease that is afflicting the world.'' He didn't elaborate on any military measures the Saudis might take. Egyptian cabinet spokesman Magdy Rady declined to comment.

About 20,000 ships a year use the Gulf of Aden on their way to the Suez Canal, which is Egypt's third-largest foreign- currency earner after tourism and remittances from Egyptian workers abroad.

Ransom

Since January, at least 91 vessels have been attacked in the Gulf of Aden, an area of 1 million square miles (2.6 million square kilometers) flanked by Yemen and Somalia.

Pirates seized three other merchant ships this week, and released a Hong Kong ship after two months in captivity. They are holding 17 ships and about 365 seamen, estimates Risk Intelligence's Hansen.

Pirates from war-torn Somalia, which hasn't had an effective government since the 1991 fall of the Siad Barre regime, have asked for $1 million ransoms on average this year, according to Chatham House, a London-based research organization that advises mainly European governments.

NATO is considering changes to its operations in the area, even if it isn't immediately planning to send more ships, Admiral Giampaolo Di Paola, chairman of the alliance's military committee, said at a news conference in Brussels yesterday.

``We are at the beginning of the approach, we are starting to reflect on this,'' he said.

Pirate Vessel Destroyed

France and Britain aren't planning to send more ships, spokesmen for their militaries said. Britain has three ships in the area, serving in the NATO and the Afghan coalition fleets. France has two frigates, as well as warplanes at its base in Djibouti on the Gulf of Aden.

The Indian Navy's Tabar frigate, which arrived in the area Nov. 2, destroyed a pirate vessel in the Gulf of Aden on Nov. 18, the government in New Delhi said yesterday.

On Nov. 13, British Royal Navy commandos gave chase to suspected Somali pirates, killing three. In September, French commandos freed two kidnapped nationals, killing one pirate and capturing six. The Danish frigate Absalon has captured and destroyed pirate boats.

``Under international law, you are entitled to kill pirates and destroy their ships in international waters,'' said Scott Stewart, senior security and counter-terrorism analyst at Stratfor, a risk consultant based in Austin, Texas. ``But each country interprets it differently.''

Spokesmen for the British, French, Danish and U.S. navies declined to discuss their rules of engagement.

The Sirius's distance from the shore may have made its crew less attentive to the risk of attack, said Dominique Montecer, director of operations at GEOS, a French risk management company.

Stratfor's Stewart agreed, saying, ``It's like protecting your wallet in a big city. It's just awareness.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Gregory Viscusi in Paris at gviscusi@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 20, 2008 08:33 EST