Singapore to Build Command Center for Maritime Security

According to the AP, Singapore is building a joint command center that will house three maritime groups under one roof to increase coordination against threats at sea, the Defense Ministry announced Wednesday. A groundbreaking ceremony was held Tuesday for the Changi Command and Control Center, which is expected to be operational in 2009 to coordinate local, regional and international security efforts to deal with threats such as piracy and terrorist attacks on ships. The center, to be located beside the Changi naval base, will house the Singapore Maritime Security Center, the Information Fusion Center and the Multinational Operations and Exercises Center.

Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia have in recent years coordinated maritime and air patrols in the Malacca Strait. Pirate attacks in the Malacca Strait, which carries half the world's oil and more than a third of its commerce, have been on the decline since July 2005, with 11 cases last year. – Source: AP