PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) participated in the 20th High-Level Meeting of the Heads of Asian Coast Guard Agencies Meeting (HACGAM) in Incheon, South Korea, from Tuesday until yesterday.
With the theme 'Gardening Our Seas, Securing Our Tomorrow', the meeting, hosted by the Korea Coast Guard, was participated by 20 countries, including Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Japan, China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Australia, and Turkiye.
MMEA acting director-general Vice Admiral Datuk Saiful Lizan Ibrahim said the agency's participation in the meeting enabled it to strengthen regional cooperation in addressing increasingly complex maritime security issues.
"The importance of regional cooperation in tackling the increasingly sophisticated threats of cross-border maritime crimes requires close collaboration and effective information sharing among the countries in this region to ensure maritime security is always safeguarded.
"This vast Asian region faces numerous maritime challenges, including cross-border crimes, smuggling, and threats to the safety of territorial waters," he said in a statement today.
Saiful Lizan said that among the main issues discussed at the meeting were efforts to combat maritime crimes, such as the intrusion of foreign fishing vessels under the framework of Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing, smuggling, and drug trafficking, human trafficking, and migrant smuggling.
He added that the MMEA was directly involved in two key areas of the meeting: maritime search and rescue (MSAR) and the prevention and control of violations of maritime laws and acts.
In addition to formal discussions, he said the meeting also provided a platform for exchanging views and experiences with other coast guard agencies in enhancing the effectiveness of maritime enforcement operations.
Saiful Lizan stated that the meeting concluded with the introduction of several important resolutions, which will serve as guidelines for member countries to improve cooperation and capabilities in facing future maritime challenges.
"MMEA has also expressed its readiness to take a more active role in upcoming regional initiatives.
"Through this participation, MMEA continues to demonstrate strong commitment to safeguarding the security of national and regional waters, as well as strengthening relationships with other coast guard agencies to achieve the shared goal of continuous maritime peace," he said. – BERNAMA