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Since 2008 the EU has, through Operation Atalanta, supported the UN in protecting humanitarian trans- ports off the Somali coast. This thesis examines if Operation Atalanta has also contributed to the de- creased pirate activity, which is evaluated by applying counterinsurgency theories to the operation. Can theories on counterinsurgency explain the success of Operation Atalanta in reduced piracy? A theoretical framework has been developed based on factors believed to trigger piracy and discourage insurgence. This has been applied to the operation to test if its actions can be related or linked to coun- terinsurgency. The result shows that the operation’s activities can be connected to counterinsurgency and is therefore believed to have contributed to the decrease in pirate activity.