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SINGAPORE: Singapore's Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng said all alert levels have been raised for the shipping community as well as in security measures in Singapore.
He was responding to a question in Parliament about the recent security alert in the Malacca Strait issued by the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN).
On Thursday, the RSN issued an alert saying it received indications that a terror group is planning attacks on oil tankers in the narrow waterway between Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Mr Wong said: "As a result, the various security agencies have been working very closely with one another, including the RSN and also our foreign liaison partners. We are also working very closely with the shipping community and the Singapore Shippers Association has put out an alert to all its members."
Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean said the RSN took action - stepping up the frequency of patrols around Singapore waters.
The Maritime Security Task Force has also been coordinating a whole-of-government response with agencies such as the Police Coast Guard and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.
Mr Teo said: "As this issue illustrates, threats to maritime security continue to be real and immediate. Countering this threat requires a multiplicity of effort - by governments acting alone and in cooperation with one another.
"In our immediate region, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand have been conducting coordinated patrols to enhance the security of the Malacca Strait. Through these Malacca Strait patrols, the littoral states have continued to work together to combat maritime threats in this important body of water."
For the early detection of maritime threats and to coordinate response, Singapore has also set up the Information Fusion Centre at the Changi Command and Control Centre.
Mr Teo said this will "help to further enhance Singapore's position as a maritime security hub".
The centre has been purpose-built to collate and analyse information shared among an international network of partners, to facilitate timely and effective responses to maritime threats.
So far, six countries have stationed liaison officers at the centre. Mr Teo said more countries are expected to do so in the coming months.
Beyond threats at sea, the terror threat remains very real for Singapore. Mr Wong said that is because the appeal of extremist and terrorist ideology is very much alive. Terrorist tradecraft and methods are also evolving.
So Singapore has undertaken measures to harden its security, from the land checkpoints to the seas. High-risk targets such as the integrated resorts (IRs) have also been hardened.
To enhance response capacity for the IRs, the Marina Bay Neighbourhood Police Centre is already operational. The Fire Station will be operational next year.
However, Mr Wong stressed that the most important asset is still people. That is where initiatives like the Community Engagement Programme to strengthen the community's crisis response come into play.
The Ministry of Home Affairs has piloted a Threat-Oriented Passenger Screening Integrated System (TOPSIS) to train non-security communities, such as airport check-in counter staff to identify suspicious passengers.
- CNA/sc
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