Pirate Terrors: Rome's Ancient War on Piracy as an Analogue for Contemporary Wars on Terror

This article offers an analogy between the Roman wars against Mediterranean piracy in the 70s and 60s BCE, especially on Crete and in Cilicia, and the United States' long wars against terror, which now span more than two decades (2002-), especially in Afghanistan, until recently, and Iraq. The article hopes to show that there are fruitful points of convergence, especially useful for drawing ethical and political lessons from history. Wars against piracy are waged against non-state actors and nearly impossible to prosecute to a negotiated settlement. Such wars quite naturally result in "mission creep," particularly when situated in a region with broader strategic interests.