Recently, the ninth APEC Regional Security and Trade (STAR) Meeting, co-hosted by the governments of China, Indonesia and Russia, was held in Beijing. The meeting focused on discussing and exchanging experience on the terrorist and security threats faced by the APEC regional transportation system, personnel exchanges, container transportation and other fields as well as prevention and countermeasures.
The theme of this meeting is "Opportunities and Challenges for Transport Security in the APEC Region". APEC member economies strive to improve port and navigation safety, especially in the field of container transport.
The U.S. and other countries have long wanted to secure their regional ports before shipping containers.
"APEC economies are seeking to establish a risk control mechanism and to further facilitate information sharing," said Harry Purwanto, head of APEC's counter-terrorism task force. "Our initiatives are aimed at enhancing security and physical screening and strengthening counter-terrorism communication while ensuring legitimate trade and transport. Right now, only 2 percent of all containers shipped worldwide to the United States are inspected."
These initiatives include joint efforts to establish a global security verification code for ships and port equipment, identify critical port infrastructure to optimize resource allocation and reduce risks, and adopt typical port security legislation and management systems. At the same time, to ensure the safety of land transport and passengers, APEC economies will work to improve public transport safety laws and regulations and strengthen public transport counter-terrorism drills.
APEC economies are creating a new Global Trade Recovery Information System Platform (G-TRIP), in collaboration with the World Customs Organization, to facilitate the exchange of vital information in the event of damage to major transportation systems. The system will include real-world cases of infrastructure conditions, priority cargo and additional safety constraints to provide decision-making support to governments, transporters and shippers in emergency situations. The system is expected to be operational by the end of this year and will be tested, information collected and distributed, adopted among APEC countries, and eventually adopted worldwide.
