The UN General Assembly will gather on Friday for an informal meeting to discuss piracy, the UN said in a concept note.
"The President of the General Assembly is convening on 14 May 2010 an informal meeting of the General Assembly to provide an opportunity for all Member states to discuss the problem of international maritime piracy in a comprehensive manner to effectively address the issue," the note said.
The UN said, citing recent statistics from the International Maritime Bureau, pirates attacked 217 ships and hijacked 47 in 2009. They received over $60 million in ransom, the largest payment on record.
Russia earlier urged other General Assembly members to "focus on the legal aspects of fighting piracy," namely on establishing an international tribunal to "ensure that the states and the world community carry out concerted and efficient actions to prosecute those involved in piracy."
In late April the UN Security Council unanimously adopted the Russian-initiated resolution on the possibility of setting up international tribunals to try pirates.
The UN News Centre said last week a UN-supported centre to prosecute pirates may be established in the Seychelles, an island nation in the Indian ocean which has recently become "a prime target" for pirates operating off the Horn of Africa.
Last week Russia had to release ten pirates captured during an operation to free its Moscow University tanker, citing a lack of proper international legal base to carry out prosecution procedures against pirates.
MOSCOW, May 14 (RIA Novosti)
