In this Oct. 21, 2008 file photo the Russian frigate Neustrashimy makes its way through the Suez canal, in the town of Suez, Egypt. A Russian Navy spokesman said the Neustrashimy will join military vessels from other nations protecting shipping in pirate-infested waters off Somalia, who are surrounding an arms-laden Ukrainian vessel seized by Somali pirates three weeks ago. Blackwater Worldwide and other private security firms are joining the battle against pirates plaguing one of the world's most important shipping lanes off the coast of Somalia. NATO, with a flotilla of warships due to arrive in Somali waters this weekend, is trying to work out legal and regulatory issues surrounding the use of armed contractors before adopting a position on private security companies.

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) _ The U.N., African Union and Arab nations struggled to respond Thursday to a surge of pirate attacks, authorizing sanctions and calling for international peacekeepers to address the chaos in Somalia that has spawned an upsurge in sea banditry.



The economic reverberations of the attacks widened as the world's largest container-shipping company said it would begin sending some slower vessels thousands of miles around southern Africa to avoid the perilous waters on the shorter Suez Canal route. Insurance underwriters and brokers said the increased danger off the east coast of Africa was driving up premiums for shipping operators.



The African Union urged the United Nations to quickly send peacekeepers to Somalia but that appeared unlikely anytime soon. A U.N. peacekeeping operation in the early 1990s saw the downing of two U.S. Army helicopters and killing of 18 American soldiers. The U.S. withdrew and U.N. peacekeepers were gone by 1995.