U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy Activities Far East.
SINGAPORE — A U.S. Coast Guard International Port Security team completed a bilateral engagement with the Republic of Singapore officials in May. This engagement involved sharing best practices and visiting with representatives from the Maritime and Port Authority to observe the implementation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code at two port facilities in Singapore: Marina Bay Cruise Center and Universal Terminals PTE Ltd.“Everyone has security responsibilities in our global economy,” said Cmdr. Bryson Spangler, ISPS Program liaison officer, U.S. Coast Guard Activities Far East Division. “The U.S. Coast Guard appreciates Singapore’s invitation and their commitment to improving port security.” The Republic of Singapore became signatory to the ISPS Code in 2004. The ISPS Program seeks to facilitate secure maritime commerce globally and prevent transnational crime organizations and terrorist from exploiting the maritime domain. The Republic of Singapore is the world’s busiest transshipment hub, handling over 30 million containers from 600 ports across 120 countries with two percent of the containers bound for the United States. A vessel arrives or departs Singapore every 3 minutes.The U.S. Coast Guard International Port Security program conducts an annual visit to assess the effectiveness of seaport anti-terrorism measures and provides recommendations to government officials to reduce the risk of a maritime security incidents and impacts to the global and regional supply chain. The ISPS program is designed to assist seaports overcome security challenges in a dynamic and ever changing threat environment. In the Asia-Pacific region, the U.S. Coast Guard’s Activities Far East unit coordinates with over 40 countries to execute these bilateral engagements. The U.S. Coast Guard is committed to promoting and facilitating safe and secure maritime trade.