@Francis,
I have accurately noted the more aggressive and beneficial long-term role of French naval forces in the region on many occasions, including an earlier reference to this very incident a page or so back on this thread. You are indulging in a rather sweeping and quite inaccurate generality.
I have also made the point that piracy, like non-national guerillas, involves clear violations of long-established international law which does not provide either the protections of either the Geneva Conventions on warfare between states or in many cases those of domestic national law. In a novel reinterpretation of past practice and precedent, European and liberal American political parties have argued to the contrary, inplying that the most restrictive elements of domestic law and the Geneva conventions apply to them. We are now being entertained by an example of the absurdity that results from this. Much, of course depends on whose ox is being gored. Europeans generally have been very critical of reasonable actions the United States took to defend itself following 9/11: moreover they and like-minded American political forces have now reversed some of these policies (though president Obama is already beginning to fudge a bit, now that he feels the cold hand of responsibility on his shoulder).
There may well be different, more permissive rules of engagement in place for the EU effort in the Northern Arabian Sea. If so I applaud it. If the action of the Dutch Navy was truly a consequence of NATO imposed rules, then I deplore them and sincerely hope the United States stays out of it.
I don't think I am any more biased with respect to Europe that are you and many Europeans with respect to America. I do, however, have a good understanding of the several centuries of our mutual histories and cultural attitudes as reflected in literature & art. There are indeed differences between the prevailing viewpoints of many Europeans & European institutions and those of many Americans: moreover these differences are of long-standing and very likely to continue.
It is merely amusing that some European governments claim international jurisdiction for their laws when they might apply to the politicians of other countries they don't like, and, at the same time, become extraordinarily timid in the face of pirates and kidnappers.
When the hell are you coming to San Francisco? (Hell is south of Pt Conception: paradise it to the North).
