Panama tells canal ships to tighten security

1.00pm

PANAMA CITY - The Panama Canal Authority has warned ships to tighten security against a possible terror attack or face being denied passage through the waterway linking the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.

Juan Hector Diaz, the authority's security chief, told Reuters on Tuesday that security has been ramped up to protect the canal, which handles 14,000 ships per year, the majority from the United States, Japan and China.

"It's for the well-being of everyone," Diaz said. "It's in Panama's interest to protect itself from a ship that could be risky for the canal installations."

The threat to deny ships passage comes as the canal authority implemented this month the global sea anti-terror law, known as the International Ship and Port Facility Security code.

The United States has said it will strictly enforce the code, pledging to board every ship in its waters from July 1 and potentially turning away vessels not compliant with the new anti-terror measures.

"The new Panama Canal Authority security requirements will apply to all vessels arriving at Panama Canal waters," the authority said on its website.

"Vessels that are not able to fully comply with these requirements ... shall be considered in violation of Panama Canal regulations ... which may result in delays or denial of transit," the authority said.

Panama's government, which has run the canal since US forces handed over control in December 1999, has stepped up security since the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

Nearly 4.5 per cent of global maritime trade passes through the waterway.

Global security experts see the canal as a medium-risk site for a terror attack, not among the world's most vulnerable but still attractive as a target given its importance to world commerce.

- REUTERS