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Sea Cargo Containers Vulnerable to Terrorism, Study Says By Mike Nartker “Terrorists could … use containers to transport dangerous materials, weapons, or use the containers themselves as weapons of mass destruction,” says the report, Seacurity: Improving the Security of the Global Sea-Container Shipping System. “The potential threat of terrorists using containers poses a large risk to our economies and our societies,” it says. The United States has begun two initiatives to help improve cargo container security. Through the Container Security Initiative, the United States has entered into agreements with a number of countries to station inspectors at foreign seaports to search high-risk cargo shipments heading to the United States (see GSN, Aug. 6). Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Robert Bonner announced last month that countries representing 19 of the 20 largest ports in the world have joined the initiative. Under the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program, foreign seaports obligate themselves to seal containers before they arrive in the United States, according to the report (see GSN, July 29). Even with the increased U.S. efforts, however, several challenges still face international cargo container security, the RAND report says. One of the main challenges is confusion among U.S. and European agencies as to the agencies responsible for managing container security, it says. In the United States, nine agencies have some role in maritime security, but none has received full authority over the issue. In the European Union, there is no single authority responsible for port and maritime security, according to the report. In addition, the fact that multiple parties are involved in the container supply chain also poses a security risk, the report says. It proposes improvements in logistics-chain integration to reduce the number of parties that handle a cargo container, and in turn, the amount of container seal inspections that would have to be performed. The report also warns of the difficulties in tracing the whereabouts of a given cargo container and in verifying its port of origin, as well as of cost concerns that could dissuade private industry from undertaking security measures. The report recommends the use of risk analysis software to better determine the likelihood that a cargo container poses a terrorist risk. One such program, Contraffic, has been developed by the European Commission’s Joint Research Center. In addition, the report also recommends the use of more “active” seals on cargo containers and the increased encouragement of companies with a “vested interest” in container security to invest in more sophisticated security measures. While cargo containers have not generally been the targets of terrorists in the past, the lack of security could make them attractive targets in the future, according Kevin O’ Brien, a RAND Europe senior policy analyst and an author of the report. “It is generally acknowledged that the terrorists will choose the way of least resistance as well as choosing targets that result in widespread media coverage. This coverage is most likely to be provided through attacks resulting in many casualties,” O’Brien said in a press statement. “Although sea-containers have not been a target in the past compared with air travel, there is no reason why they shouldn’t be targets in the future,” he said.
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