Asia/Pacific News
Singapore Warship Foils Robbery Attempt of Malaysian-Flagged Vessel in Singapore Strait
The robbery of a Malaysian-flagged tugboat in the Singapore Strait has been thwarted by a warship deployed by the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), media reports.
The Fearless-class RSS Resilience was dispatched by the RSN's Maritime Security Task Force (MSTF) on the morning of September 1 after the Port Operations Control Centre received word from the crew of Permata 1 that robbers were boarding their barge as it navigated the Singapore Strait's eastern approaches.
The robbers fled towards Indonesian waters upon spotting the warship at about 9:20 am, the Ministry of Defence reported.
The Indonesian Navy's (TNI AL) Western Fleet Sea Security Group and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency were also alerted, and the former apprehended the three robbers and recovered stolen cargo.
RSS Resilience accompanied Permata 1 back to Singapore waters.
"The close cooperation between the RSN and TNI AL is a reflection of the strong ties between our navies," said Rear-Admiral Frederick Chew, commander of the MSTF.
"We need to continue working closely together to keep up the pressure on sea robbers and to bring sea robbery incidents down."
Although details of the stolen cargo were not disclosed, global ship hijackings in general are on the rise and driven by marine fuel theft, with Indonesia an area of intense activity with 100 reported pirate attacks in 2014.
