Australian Maritime Issues 2007 - Royal Australian Navy

152 AUSTRALIAN MARITIME ISSUES 2007: SPC-A ANNUAL
Conclusion
The Malacca Strait is very important not only to the littoral states but also to other
international users. Sea robbery and the possibility of terrorists turning large hijacked
vessels carrying dangerous cargoes into weapons of mass destruction is a threat to
shipping. Although the possibility of maritime terrorism remains a threat, an attack does
not appear imminent. Malaysia and the other littoral states are working to ensure that
an attack will not occur. Measures taken against sea robbers have been successful as
evidenced by a drastic drop in the number of sea robbery incidents in the strait. There
are also no known links between terrorists and sea robbers and, most importantly, no
known terrorist activities in the strait.
Malaysia is an active participant in the global anti-terror campaign. While Malaysia
does not fully subscribe to some of the approaches adopted by the major powers in
addressing terrorist threats, it has cooperated fully with extra regional powers such
as the US, Japan and Australia, which have benefited substantially from intelligence
sharing and logistic support in their counter-terror operations in the South East Asian
region. Malaysia’s existing maritime capabilities are able to manage the current level of
threat, and while assistance is always welcome, it is best focused on capacity building in
areas such as maritime patrol aircraft, uninhabited aerial vehicles and communications
systems – but an external physical presence is not required.
Notes
1
Mohd Nizam Basiron and Amir Dastan (eds), Building a Comprehensive Security Environment
in the Straits of Malacca, Maritime Institute of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, 2006, p. 3.
2
International Maritime Bureau, Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships: Annual Report
1 January–31 December 2006, International Maritime Bureau, Essex, 2007, p. 5.
3
P. Mukundan, ‘The scourage of piracy in Southeast Asia: Can any improvements be expected
in the near future?’ in D. Johnson and M. Valencia (eds), Piracy in Southeast Asia: Status,
Issues, and Responses, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, 2005, p. 38.
4
Jemaah Islamiyah is now led by Abu Dujana of Indonesia, who took over the leadership from
Abu Rusdan, who took over from Abu Bakar Bashir after he was arrested by the Indonesian
Government. ‘The new faces of terror’, New Sunday Times, 5 March 2006, p. 14. (Abu Dujana
was arrested by the Indonesian Police on 20 June 2007 in Jogjakarta, Indonesia.)
5
Melisa Goh, ‘International maritime expert cheer joint patrol in the Straits of Malacca’, Asia
Pacific News, 29 June 2004.
6
M. Richardson, ‘Marine-related terrorism’, Journal of the Australian Naval Institute, Autumn
2004, p. 18.
7
The Star, Penang, Malaysia, 5 July 2004.