SINGAPORE AGREES TO JOIN CSI

SINGAPORE AGREES TO JOIN CSI    The government of Singapore has agreed to join the Container Security Initiative, a Customs program designed to prevent terrorists from using seagoing containers as a conveyance for a weapon of mass destruction.
   CSI was kicked off in January to enhance the security of global maritime shipping. A core element of CSI involves placing U.S. Customs inspectors at foreign seaports to screen U.S.-bound cargo before arrival at an American port. Under the agreement announced Tuesday by U.S. Customs Commissioner Robert Bonner, Singapore will become the first CSI pilot port in Asia.
   Under the agreement, U.S. Customs inspectors would work jointly with Singapore authorities in pre-screening cargo containers bound for America. The U.S. Customs inspectors would observe physical examinations conducted on high-risk containers by their Singaporean counterparts.
   “This important first agreement in Asia will provide a significant measure of security for Singapore and the United States,” Bonner said. “This accord will also provide a significant measure of security for the global trading system as a whole.”
   The port of Singapore ranks second to Hong Kong in the volume of cargo containers handled. Approximately 80 percent of the containers handled in Singapore are transshipments. As such, it represents a key chokepoint in global trading.
   Customs is in discussions with several other nations in Europe and Asia to form more CSI partnerships.
   In March, teams of U.S. Customs inspectors were placed at the Canadian seaports of Montreal, Halifax, and Vancouver to pre-screen cargo offloaded at those ports and bound for the U.S. In turn, Canada has placed its own inspectors at Seattle, Tacoma and Newark to pre-screen cargo bound for Canada.