RI, PHILIPPINE NAVIES TO STEP UP SEA PATROLS

Jakarta, March 22 (ANTARA) - The Indonesian and Philippine navies have agreed to intensify sea patrols to deal with arms smuggling and terrorism, a top Indonesian naval officer said.

The two navies had so far conducted routine joint patrols along their common sea borders in a coordinated way, Indonesian Naval Chief of Staff Admiral Agus Suhartono said on Monday.

"In April we will conduct joint patrols to curb smuggling activity and terrorist acts," he said.

He admitted the two navies had often found it difficult to catch red-handed terrorism-related arms smugglers.

Philippine-registered ships which employed Indonesian nationals often carried basic necessaries to be exchanged with marine products in the coastal areas of North Maluku, he said.

"(The crew members) often capitalize on the situation to smuggle in weapons. But when we are about to catch them they throw the weapons into the sea. So we have difficulty catching them red-handed," he said.

He said the Indonesian Navy had also been conducting joint patrols with the Malaysian, Singapore and Thai navies in securing the Malacca Strait.

Separately, on Monday, spokesman of the Indonesian National Defense Forces (TNI) Commodore Sagom Tamboen said the navy had been tightening its patrols in waterways across the country particularly those often used by foreign ships as part of its efforts to prevent smuggling activity and terrorist acts.