S'pore ups police deployment

S'pore ups police deployment

SINGAPORE: The Singapore government said on Monday it was placing more elite police personnel in areas frequented by foreigners.

The announcement comes days after the airing of a videotape from Osama bin Laden, threatening strikes on U.S. interests worldwide.

The Singapore Police Force said its placement of more Special Operations Command forces was not in response to the video.

"It is part of measures we are taking to deter terror attacks," said police spokeswoman Teo Poh Leng.

Singapore hosts the regional headquarters of over 1,000 American multinational companies and regularly hosts U.S. Navy warships and aircraft carriers.

A police statement said the city-state was boosting street patrols to "reassure the public", but underlined that the stepped up security did not "signal an increase in the level of threat".

Singapore, a close ally in U.S. President George W. Bush's war on terror, has stationed its elite Gurkha unit at potential U.S. and Israeli terror targets and stepped up security at its airport and government buildings since 2001.

Singapore's founding father and elder statesman Lee Kuan Yew said the country's links to Washington make it a possible target. -- AP