Australia backs regional task force

Australia backs regional task force

AUSTRALIA: Australia will support the creation of a regional
antiterrorism task force in Southeast Asia, Police Commissioner
Mick Keelty said on Monday.

The idea is expected to be discussed at a meeting of police
chiefs from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in
Jakarta this week, Australian media reported.

While Australia is not a member of ASEAN, its police work
closely with their counterparts in countries such as Indonesia
and the Philippines, and Keelty has been invited to the Jakarta
conference.

"It's up to the Indonesians and the other ASEAN police chiefs
as to what initiatives they want to bring forward and what they
finally agree to -- I wouldn't want to second guess them," Keelty
told national radio.

"But we would support a team being put together to look at,
particularly, the areas where there's cross-border movement of
people who are suspected terrorists, who have been under
investigation by our joint teams in Indonesia and our joint teams
in the Philippines.

"Something like a joint effort or a collaborative effort would
be a good outcome."

Keelty said such a project would build on existing
arrangements, such as the Jakarta Center for Law Enforcement
Cooperation, which already involves Australia, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. --AFP