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A
famous Welsh pirate Bartholomew
Roberts argued that honest labor
on merchant or naval ships
offered "thin commons, low
wages, and hard labour," whereas
piracy provided liberty, power,
and quick riches.
Modern State-Sponsored Piracy
In
July 2026 the European Union (EU)
adopted a
sanctions package that
legally empowers EU member
states to detain "shadow fleet"
tankers suspected of evading
Western oil price caps,
confiscate their cargo (such as
crude oil or grain), and sell it
on the open market.
Victims and various
international legal critics
condemned the EU policy, calling
the authorization to seize and
sell cargo "nothing other than
piracy and robbery". They argue
that Western domestic sanctions
lack international standing on
the high seas and that forcing
entry onto sovereign vessels
violates freedom of navigation.
Critics point out that the
practice strongly resembles
historical state-sponsored
privateering. By legalizing the
confiscation and monetization of
foreign cargo to fund national
interests (or deny funds to an
adversary), European governments
are using state mechanisms to
achieve the same financial and
disruptive ends that privateers
once did.
The Risk of Nuclear War Posed by
State-Sponsored Piracy
International law permits the
use of a deadly military
response to aggressive acts of
piracy. Consequently, the pirate
seizure of merchant vessels
belonging to nuclear-armed
powers could very well lead to a
nuclear war.
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Why has the political and
economic role of the EU in the
world begun to decline so
rapidly in recent years?
→
A 5‑Why exploration of the
deeper structural causes
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