( CNN ) -- The U.S. Navy Seals ' dramatic rescue of Poul Hagen Thisted and Jessica Buchanan early Wednesday ended the hostages ' three-month ordeal in Somalia . But why was it left to the United States to conduct this operation in a country thousands of miles away ? The short answer is that the United States has the military and intelligence capabilities to conduct the rescue of a U.S. citizen in pressing need of medical attention . The longer answer is that Somalia lacks the capacity to suppress piracy and other organized crime without international support . This is evidenced by the failed attempt of Somali forces to rescue a Danish family in March 2011 , where , as has so often been the case , local authorities found themselves outgunned by the organized criminals . There are no Somali agencies that can effectively fight piracy and other crimes in Somalia , which has existed under a relatively impotent Transitional Federal Government since the central government collapsed in 1991 . Most of Somalia is a patchwork of quasi-autonomous regions , across which neither governance nor law enforcement is coordinated . While most nations recognize the transitional government in Mogadishu as the legitimate government of Somalia , its reach is extremely limited . Local administrations are thus left to manage issues of organized crime with little resources or support . The result : Citizens exist in a precarious truce with a well-armed and organized criminal element . It is in this context of lawlessness that the United States opted to take direct action to release these two hostages . But such heroic and high-profile moves , by the United States or any other nation equipped for them , are not a long-term solution to Somalia 's plague of organized crime , now spilling across borders . To break this cycle of crime , the international community must step up its commitment to investing in Somali stability and addressing the symptoms of the nation 's governance vacuum . A recent report by the Center for American Progress estimated that $ 9 billion in humanitarian and development aid went into Somalia over the past 20 years . This is a stark contrast to the billions that piracy costs the world each year . A forthcoming One Earth Future report finds that $ 7 billion was spent on measures to address Somali piracy alone in 2011 . If the international community does not shift toward building sustainable Somali law enforcement capabilities at sea and ashore , the only realistic options to resolve hostage situations will continue to be through military action or ransom payments . Among the ways money used to combat piracy is spent : . 1. International Navies support operations to patrol Somali waters and the Western Indian Ocean . 2 . Nations fund suspect and prisoner transfer arrangements and `` outsourcing '' of prosecution within the region , as well as Europe , North America and Asia . ( Even more will be spent to incarcerate convicted pirates . ) 3 . The maritime industry spends billions on armed guards , extra insurance , `` ship hardening '' and re-routing . 4 . Shipping companies pay expensive ransoms , if other measures fail . Somali criminal elements have proven themselves to be amazingly resilient and adaptable . And we can expect that this rescue may lead to an even greater escalation of violence and corresponding threats to innocent human life , including the estimated 190 hostages held ( one of whom is a recently captured American writer ) and the thousands of seafarers who continue to transit this dangerous area . Indeed , the violence has been increasing as pirates confront private security teams and aggressive naval actions . They have changed their tactics to separate and conceal hostages and are re-investing ransom funds into criminal enterprises . Gangs are also becoming more sophisticated . Hostage takers now demonstrate a familiarity with international law that prohibits negotiation with international terrorist groups . Groups labeled as terrorists simply sell their hostages to middlemen who can legally negotiate . Yet there has been surprisingly little investment from the international maritime community in a sustainable solution , although for a brief time last fall it appeared there might be a ray of hope . When the radical Islamist group , Al-Shabaab withdrew from Mogadishu in early fall 2011 , many saw this as an opportunity to reinvigorate efforts to stabilize Somalia . In September , key regional leaders from Somalia adopted a `` Somali Roadmap '' to improve security , the constitution , reconciliation and good governance . But with a fractured political system and roiling conflict between the country 's regions , implementation has been slow . Now the world 's eyes are turning to a high-level conference to be convened by U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron in London on February 23 aimed at tackling the root causes of the problems in Somalia , including piracy . We can only hope that this conference will set the stage for a coordinated and forward-looking international effort that engages all the stakeholders in Somalia and looks past the symptoms . Follow CNN Opinion on Twitter . Join the conversation on Facebook . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Jon Huggins .
Jon Huggins says U.S. held Somali pirate hostages because it had failed to do it . More importantly , he says , it did not ; pirates more powerful than weak government . He says world should aim aid at areas of poverty , not just spending to fight terrorism . Huggins : International cooperation must engage all stakeholders ; coming conference is hope .