Pirates have ruled Somalia’s waves for much of the past 15 years. Unmolested by any sort of functioning government on land or navy at sea, they have been free to pick off freighters from one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

But that has begun to change in the past couple of months.

The pirates’ big mistake was to hijack the Faina, a Ukrainian vessel crammed with Russian-made tanks, armaments and ammunition.

Before that, the world had been content to leave Somalia languishing in anarchy, at the mercy of warlords, insurgents and gangsters. Everyone knows where the pirate lairs are — places such as Hobiyo and Eyl in the northern region of Puntland — and the GPS co-ordinates of their booty.

But after the Faina was taken two taskforces — from Nato and the EU — have sailed for the Gulf of Aden along with an assortment of warships from other nations. It was the thought of heavy weaponry falling into the hands of the country’s Islamists — some with links to al-Qaeda — at one of the country’s arms bazaars that provoked an international military response.

This response is welcome but it may not be enough to eradicate the problem. Unless the lawlessness in Somalia is sorted out there will always be young men with guns ready to try their luck at sea. For now the navies are content to patrol shipping lanes, offering protection from every gang of opportunists armed with AK47s and rocket-propelled grenades.

International warships have another vital function: escorting much-needed food deliveries into Mogadishu’s port. From that city’s pockmarked villas and dangerous streets, foreign vessels are viewed as legitimate targets whether they contain aid, arms or anything else. In September The Times watched an aid ship slip into harbour under the watchful guns of a Canadian frigate — it is the only safe way to get food into a starving country.

The situation in Somalia is a catastrophe. Gunboat charity is no remedy for piracy.

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