Sri Lanka Defence Secretary calls on nations to share intelligence to combat trans-national crime

Nations in the South Asian and South East Asian regions need to share intelligence to combat trans-national crimes such as human trafficking, narcotics smuggling and terrorism, said Sri Lanka's Defense Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.

Delivering a keynote address at the South and South East Asian Nations (SASEAN) Defence Chiefs Dialogue 2014 at Colombo's Kingsbury Hotel, Rajapaksa said most countries in these two regions have been ravaged by such crimes in varying degrees over the last few decades, and therefore, it was critical to combat such menaces with a cooperative iron hand to ensure economic development and prosperity.

He described intelligence sharing as the key instrument to combat trans-national crime.

"Sharing of intelligence enables militaries, law enforcement agencies and other key actors in upholding national security to improve their preparedness to combat such threats," he pointed out.

He called on participating nations to improve their inter-military cooperation in terms of increased training, joint exercises, exchanges and assist in capacity building to improve regional security as a whole.

He further said that a primary aspiration of all countries in the South Asian and South East Asian regions is to maintain peace and stability for their continued economic development, and this could only be assured if there was regional stability and an upholding of national security.

He also said reducing tensions and overcoming misunderstandings between countries in the region is very important in this cause.

He also cautioned against the activities of non-state actors and incidence of transnational crime, which he added needed to be closely monitored and guarded against, reports the Lanka Page web site.

The three-day conclave, initiated and hosted by Sri Lanka for the first time, has brought together defense chiefs of the eight SAARC and ten ASEAN member nations. In addition high ranking defense officials from China and Russia are also participating as observers. It will conclude on November 29.