IMO Secretary-General Sekimizu today (26 November) met Major General Martin Smith MBE, Operation Commander of the European Union Naval Force Somalia (EU NAVFOR), at IMO Headquarters, to discuss piracy off the coast of Somalia. Mr Sekimizu welcomed the extension of the EU NAVFOR mandate to the end of 2016. They agreed that pirates continued to pose a threat to shipping and there was no room for complacency. Naval forces were still required and merchant ships should continue to apply IMO guidance and Best Management Practices diligently.