The UN-backed global conference on piracy ended in Nairobi late yesterday with participants warning to impose sanctions on Somali leaders who obstruct peace in the war-torn country.

In a joint communiquàƒ© issued at the end of the two-day meeting, the over 145 representatives from more than 40 countries admitted that piracy cannot be durably tackled in Somalia without the return of peace, stabilize and functioning government.

The meeting underscored the need to strengthen the capacity of Somali national as well as regional authorities in combating piracy both to interdict pirates at sea, and to take effective legal action against pirates once returned to shore.

"Somali leaders who impede the stabilization of their country creating conditions to breed and escalate piracy will be individually and collectively placed under sanctions by the African Union and IGAD and also in accordance to UN Security Council resolution 1844 (2008)," they said.

The pirates' focus has been the Gulf of Aden, between Somalia and Yemen, where 20,000 merchant ships a year pass on the way in and out of the Suez Canal, the quickest route from Asia to Europe and the Americas.

The two-day conference brought together officials from more than 40 countries, as well as representatives from regional and international organizations who condemned all acts of piracy and armed robbery against vessels in the territorial waters of Somalia, in the Gulf of Aden and off the coast of Eastern Africa.

It also welcomed UN resolutions along with other initiatives by countries, regional and international organizations to counter piracy in Somalia.

The conference stressed the importance of enhancing coordination and cooperation in the fight against piracy, and welcomed the recent efforts of States and organizations to establish means for that cooperation.

"The respective countries resolved to cooperate with each other and with regional and international organizations, including the International Maritime Organization and the shipping industry, to combat piracy at sea and address the root causes on land," the joint statement said.

They welcomed the signing of the Djibouti Agreement between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia (ARS) on Aug. 19, 2008 and highlighted the need for additional assistance from the international community.

They urged the Somali parties once again and the international community to fully implement the Djibouti Agreement.

The meeting noted that the strengthening and enlarging of the Transitional Federal Institutions and the urgent improvement of the security situation on land are critical to reducing piracy off Somalia.

According to the communiquàƒ©, the conference urged all other Somali parties to renounce violence and join the Djibouti process which remains open to all parties and reaffirmed the sovereignty of Somali territorial waters against illegal fishing and dumping of chemicals and other waste.

"They also condemned the illegal flow of arms and drugs and of human trafficking and migrant smuggling by other criminal groups across Somali territorial waters. In this regard, they resolved to take firm action against all those involved in undermining peace and stability in Somalia," it said.

The UN-backed meeting also expressed strong concern over impunity and the alarming deterioration in respect of human rights and of the humanitarian situation in the war-ravaged nation.

They called on States, regional and international organizations to enhance information sharing and coordinate their naval efforts to ensure the effective protection of maritime convoys carrying assistance in order to facilitate its timely delivery to Somalia's ports including by taking steps to interdict financial networks.

"They stressed the need to support countries in the region and regional organizations in combating piracy, including through strengthening the rule of law at sea and on land. In this regard, they urged the provision of necessary technical support to enhance maritime and legal capacity building of all regional countries most directly affected by piracy," it said.

The meeting began just one day after the European Union outlined a new security mission off the coast of Somalia.

Operation Atalanta joins existing deployments from NATO, Russia, and other countries that have sought to combat a sharp rise in piracy in the area in recent months.