GERMANY MAY contribute as many as 1,400 soldiers to an EU mission to combat piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the coast of Somalia.
The claim came as details emerged of another hijack in the region, this time of a Yemeni cargo ship; for its release, Somali pirates are demanding $2 million (€1.5 million).
Berlin's defence ministry declined to comment on the details of a report in the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper yesterday, but confirmed talks were "ongoing".
A mission of 1,400 troops would represent a considerable military deployment by German standards.
Until 1992 German soldiers were involved only in humanitarian efforts and deployments are rare.
As well as 3,500 soldiers in Afghanistan, set to rise to 4,500, smaller missions are deployed in Sudan, Bosnia and Lebanon. But all are operating on mandates that are reviewed annually by parliament.
The tight parliamentary regulation of German military deployments may be tested by the EU's "Operation Atalanta", which will see five to seven frigates backed by surveillance aircraft head for the Somali coast by mid-December.
Some legal experts suggest that military deployment laws prohibit Germany sending troops into direct combat situations.
The prospect of conflict is likely, according to EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana. He said in Brussels that the mission will use "all means to protect, to deter, and will include the use of force".
The true nature of any German military deployment will be hotly debate inside and outside parliament before any vote next month.
According to the news report, any deployment is likely to be made up of 500 sailors to staff a frigate, with other troops acting as security forces on German trade vessels. Two German merchant ships had their first brush with Somali pirates in speedboats on Sunday, prompting emergency calls to the German navy.
After Russia, India and Britain, the German navy is the fourth to be dragged into conflict with pirates based in largely lawless Somalia.At the moment there are 15 warships in the region, including four NATO vessels, and ships from India, Malaysia and Russia.
So far this year the International Maritime Bureau has counted 63 clashes off the Somali coast and Gulf of Aden between international merchant ships and pirates. There were 581 crew members taken hostage in the region from January to September, up from 172 in the same period last year.
Authorities in the region place some of the blame for the rising number of hijacks - and ballooning ransom demands - on the willingness of owners to pay.