What are the various types of encounters in acts of piracy, according to NATO?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Suspicious activity is any piracy-related event that is suspicious enough to warrant consideration and sharing with the merchant shipping community, but does not have sufficient
weight to constitute an approach, attack, or pirated/hijacked vessel.

• An approach is any piracy event that is suspicious enough to warrant consideration and
includes actions by a suspicious vessel closing on a steady bearing and/or weapons that are clearly
seen on display as a show of force or threat against the vessel but have not yet been discharged
against the merchant vessel. An approach is not an attack, or a pirated/hijacked vessel.

• An attack is any piracy event that has been clearly deemed as a threat against a merchant
vessel. An attack may have escalated from suspicious activity and approach, but it is clear that weapons have been discharged against the merchant vessel, or a clear attempt to board the vessel has been made. This is determined by the attacking vessel(s): (a) discharging weapons fire against, (b) making contact with, and/or (c) having illegally boarded (but have not gotten control of both propulsion and steerage of) the merchant vessel. An attack is not an approach or a pirated/hijacked vessel.

• A pirated/hijacked vessel is an attack where the vessel has been boarded by pirates and the
master/crew has lost control of both steerage and propulsion.

• A disruption is any of the above categories that have been confirmed as having been interrupted by military intervention.