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CHIANG MAI, Thailand : Thailand has signed a regional agreement on combatting piracy and may take part in joint air patrols over the Malacca Strait, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said.
"Thailand supports the initiative on the 'eyes in the skies' and we will consider participation to some extent that we can contribute to security in the region," Thaksin said after talks with Singapore's premier Lee Hsien Loong.
The two leaders discussed a range of regional issues during their two-day annual retreat in Thaksin's home town of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand.
Thai Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon signed the regional cooperation agreement on anti-piracy (ReCAAP) during the retreat, which also included talks with his Singaporean counterpart George Yeo.
The "eyes in the skies" aerial patrol initiative has been promoted by Malaysia to counter piracy and terrorism threats in the Malacca Strait, a major international shipping route.
The three littoral states of Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore have already begun coordinated sea patrols of the waterway, but agreed last month to boost surveillance with joint air patrols.
"A problem like the Malacca Straits is not just a problem for the countries which are right there on the border," Lee said, adding that poor security causes freight costs to increase.
"If there is terrorist incident in the Straits of Malacca, the whole region will be affected," he said.
Thailand is not a littoral state of the waterway, but as it is situated on its northern approaches, it could become involved in protecting the area, Lee added.
"There may be opportunities for us to work together with Thailand to intensify some activities and patrols so as to have a deterrent effect and a confidence-building effect," he said.
The specific details of Thailand's involvement and the level of cooperation with the three nations bordering the strait are still to be hammered out by officials, Kantathi said.
"The principle is that we want to help ensure the straits of Malacca is safe, secure, (and) we want to ensure that the situation about piracy is of course dealt with in a comprehensive way," he said.
What measures would be appropriate, such as sending troops or naval patrols, and where they would operate, was still to be decided, he added.
- AFP /ct
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