The United States' Defense Threat Reduction Agency (US-DTRA) has committed support to assist the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in the identification and prevention of the transportation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) amid the continuous threat of terrorism activities.
The commitment of support was made during the courtesy call of US-DTRA officials on BOC Commissioner Yogi Filemon Ruiz wherein the US officials also vowed to support in training local BOC personnel to enhance their capability in handling and transporting dual goods before disposal.
The courtesy call stemmed from the partnership of the US-DTRA with the Department of Trade and Industry-Strategic Management Office (STMO) through the Strategic Offensive Arms Elimination (SOAE) Program to conduct a WMD Material Post-Interdiction Disposition Needs and Gap Analysis.
The SOAE Program aims to support the safe and secure elimination of WMD delivery systems, as well as related materials, technologies, and expertise.
During the visit, US-DTRA and STMO officials also conducted a site visit at BOC ports to assess the existing protocols and capabilities of the agency handling dual goods, as they will be providing a report containing their initial evaluation and recommendations subsequently. Among those visited were the Manila International Container Port (MICP), the Port of Manila (POM) and the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
The site visit, according to Ruiz, was aimed at evaluating the ports' capacity to perform assessments and dispose of WMD materials transiting through the country and the region.
"The BOC will work closely with the US-DTRA in developing a cohesive plan for the agency in addressing concerns on the identification, safe handling, transportation, disposition, and counterproliferation of WMD materials," said Ruiz.
He added that the BOC provided the review team from the U.S. government information with the issues and challenges faced by the agency.