9/5/2007
KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysia's defense forces chief on Wednesday urged Asia-Pacific countries to increase military cooperation and intelligence sharing to combat terrorism.
Terrorism has been on the rise since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in the United States and the 2002 Bali bomb attacks, Gen. Abdul Aziz Zainal said at an inaugural conference of intelligence chiefs from the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.
"The new challenges confronting the 21st century are from alienated individuals and militant organizations. Having to address these invisible enemies ... it becomes crucial for us to cooperate and share intelligence to counter them," Abdul Aziz said.
The three-day conference, which is jointly organized by the Malaysian and U.S. defense ministries, involves military intelligence chiefs from 19 countries. They include the U.S., Britain, France, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, India, Thailand, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Brunei, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Pakistan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam.
"This is a historic opportunity for intelligence chiefs to get together, to talk about areas of mutual cooperation, how we can go about sharing information for the benefit of all nations," said Lt. about sharing information for the benefit of all nations," said Lt. Gen. Michael D.Maples, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, part of the US Defense Department.
The al-Qaida-linked Southeast Asian militant group Jemaah Islamiyah, blamed for the Bali blasts in Indonesia which claimed 202 lives, has reportedly been weakened in recent years by dozens of arrests in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. But experts have warned that up to 40 homegrown militant groups exist worldwide and continue to pose a threat.
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