Last week, in the distant waters of the Greenland-Iceland-UK gap, the US Coast Guard cutter Munro seized the oil tanker now known as Marinera – formerly Bella 1 – with support from US special forces, RAF surveillance aircraft and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary tanker Tideforce. This was the culmination of a long, almost slow-motion, pursuit across the Atlantic. The boarding was expected to be a dangerous special operation, but in the event the Marinera’s crew offered no resistance. The case proves the importance of teamwork and aggressive application of maritime law.
