摘要：This article provides a theoretical framework for examining Somali piracy from its origins in the1990s to the present. This analysis provides both a detailed description of the changing nature ofpiracy, as well as explanations for why these changes have occurred. The increase in pirate activityoff Somalia from 1991 to 2011 did not occur in a steady linear progression, but took place in threeseparate phases. These three phases can be viewed in terms of a "cycle of piracy," based on a theorydeveloped by the pirate historian Philip Gosse in 1932. By employing this framework, policy-makersin the U.S. and elsewhere would be better able to judge when counter-piracy intervention isnecessary. By preventing piracy from developing into large-scale professionalized operations, aswitnessed in Somalia since 2007, the international community will be able carryout more efficientand effective piracy suppression operations in future.This article is available in Journal of Strategic Security:http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/jss/vol6/iss1/8
