A Chinese fishing vessel off the coast of Somalia has come under the control of alleged pirates, a European Union anti-piracy force operating in the area said Thursday. The ship, with up to 18 crew members, had been taken over by the suspected pirates, some of whom were armed with AK-47s and machine guns, the European Union Naval Force Operation Atalanta said in a statement. It classified the incident as a robbery at sea and said none of the crew had been injured. The force had responded to an alert from police in Somalia’s semi-autonomous northeastern Puntland region that a Chinese ship off the coast had allegedly been hijacked, its statement said. China has yet to comment on the situation, which occurred in a key region for its overseas naval activities guarding the country’s expanded footprint and economic interests in Africa and the Middle East. The People’s Liberation Army Navy…
