Air patrols guard Malacca Strait

The four Southeast Asian nations guarding the Malacca Strait started joint air patrols of the vital sea-lane when a Malaysian military plane took to the air with Singaporean personnel on board.

The aircraft took off from Subang air force base, on the outskirts of the Malaysian capital, with a crew of seven Malaysians and three Singaporeans ? a milestone in cooperation for two neighbours with a long history of squabbling. Regular flights over the waterway, a haunt for pirates, are set to follow, with involvement from Indonesia and Thailand, the other adjoining states. The planes will operate from all four countries, using radar and digital imaging to spot pirates and direct naval and coastguard vessels to intercept them.

“So much of the international community depends on the safety and security of the Strait of Malacca and it is incumbent upon us as littoral states to ensure the safety and security of the strait,” said Malaysian Defence Minister Najib Razak. The narrow, 500-mile waterway carries a quarter of global trade and nearly all oil imports for Japan and China. There are fears it could become a target for a terror attack.

Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore launched coordinated sea patrols of the strait last year, but piracy and robbery have remained rampant and they are under pressure from major users such as Japan and the United States to step up security. The three littoral states, which command most of the strait and are home to its largest ports, have resisted international involvement in policing the waterway because of sovereignty concerns but are now inviting foreign powers to provide aircraft.

Malaysia has said crew from the littoral states would operate the monitoring equipment on board foreign planes, though foreigners could fly the aircraft. International maritime authorities welcomed the move, saying it promised efficient use of law enforcement resources.

“At the end of the day what is essential is that a high risk situation which is identified by the ‘Eyes in the Sky’ should be followed up by action on the water,” said Captain Pottengal Mukundan, director of the IMO. “There must be resources and the will to do that. I think the will is there, but I hope also the resources will be there to take action. And then we will see a reduction in the attacks.”