MFA Press Statement - Counter Terrorism Finance Workshop Jointly hosted by Singapore and the United States, 21 - 22 Jan 2003

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS PRESS STATEMENT

The Governments of Singapore and the United States are jointly hosting a two-day counter terrorism finance workshop at the Marina Mandarin Hotel in Singapore on 21-22 January 2003. The closed-door workshop brings together senior officials from the foreign ministries, law enforcement and financial regulatory agencies of more than 20 countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF).

The purpose of the workshop is to promote international cooperation in combating terrorist financing by providing an opportunity for ASEAN and PIF officials to exchange views on our national experiences and strengthen our individual and collective capacities in counter terrorism finance.

The workshop will deal with compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1373 and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)'s Eight Special Recommendations on Terrorist Financing, and also examine ways to reinforce the counterterrorism finance capabilities of domestic institutions. Senior representatives from the UN's Counter Terrorism Committee, FATF and the Asia/ Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) will also be addressing the workshop.

Singapore's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and for Trade and Industry, Mr Raymond Lim, delivered the opening address at the workshop on 21 Jan 2003 morning. A copy of the statement is attached.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
21 JANUARY 2003

OPENING STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER OF STATE
FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY,
MR RAYMOND LIM, AT THE COUNTER TERRORISM FINANCE WORKSHOP JOINTLY HOSTED BY SINGAPORE AND THE UNITED STATES,
AT THE MARINA MANDARIN, SINGAPORE, ON 21 JANUARY 2003

Distinguished participants,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to Singapore to attend the Counter Terrorism Finance Workshop, which is jointly organised by the United States and Singapore.

2 Terrorism is not a new phenomenon. Many of us have long histories of combating terrorism. However, the September 11 attacks focused the world's attention on the globalised nature of the terrorist threat, and emphasised the need for a coordinated global response. Post September 11, we have witnessed an unprecedented degree of international cooperation in the war against terrorism. International organisations such as the United Nations Security Council and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on Money Laundering have played key roles in forging international consensus and setting global standards in counter terrorism, especially counter terrorism finance. One of the most comprehensive and universal counter terrorism initiatives was the Security Council's Resolution 1373, which provided a common legal basis for international action against terrorists and their supporters. FATF's Eight Special Recommendations, together with its earlier forty recommendations against money laundering, have also provided a comprehensive framework to curb the abuse of the international financial system by terrorists.

3 In the past year, the international community has rallied together and acted in unison to fight terrorism. At various international fora, including ASEAN and the Pacific Islands Forum, states have repeatedly underscored their commitment to cooperate in this common endeavour. Before September 11, only four states were parties to the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism. Today, 132 nations have signed and 64 have ratified the Convention. The G7 reported in September 2002 that over 160 countries and jurisdictions had taken new action to combat terrorist financing.

4 However, notwithstanding the significant progress that has been made, terrorism continues to pose a grave threat to our societies today. Three months ago, we were shocked and saddened by the Bali bombings that took nearly two hundred lives and injured many more. In the following month, the terrorist bombing in Mombasa turned yet another peaceful resort into a scene of terror and carnage. Such terrorist acts remind us that while we may achieve occasional successes along the way, the fight against terrorism is a very long journey. Terrorism, like disease, can never be completely eradicated. But by working together, and taking practical steps to counter terrorism, I am confident that we can contain the disease.

5 There is increasing recognition among law enforcement, financial regulatory and intelligence agencies that combating money laundering and terrorism financing are important ingredients in the fight against terrorism. The globalised nature of the international financial system, which has served as an engine for unprecedented economic growth in many countries, has made the transfer of funds across borders a seamless task. However, the efficiency of global financial system can also be abused by terrorists to raise, transfer and hide the funds used to support their activities. The challenge for many governments is how to prevent the financial system from being abused by terrorists, while at the same time ensuring that the system functions smoothly and efficiently and that legitimate transactions are not unnecessarily disrupted.

6 In the past year, considerable progress has been made in combating money laundering and terrorism financing. The UN's Monitoring Group established by Resolution 1390 reported in December 2002 that a number of states have taken "new steps to invigorate their anti-terrorism financing efforts", including "increased vigilance and more extensive use of suspicious transactions reports as well as the introduction of new anti-money laundering measures". The Monitoring Group also reported that efforts were underway in many banking centres to expand the application of stricter "know your customer" rules. These are positive developments. However, while many jurisdictions have developed expertise to deal with money laundering, combating terrorist financing is a relatively new field, in which many of us have relatively little experience. Although there are many similarities between combating money laundering and terrorist financing, there are also important differences. Money laundering typically involves the proceeds of crime, while terrorist financing may and often involves "clean money" derived from ostensibly legitimate businesses, or funds raised in the name of charitable causes. Another important difference is that the financing of terrorism may involve much smaller amounts than in money laundering, possibly no more than a few thousand dollars at any one time. This makes the detection of suspicious transactions much more onerous. Furthermore, just as states are taking steps to counter terrorism finance, so too will terrorists seek new ways and locations to raise and hide their finances. As the formal financial system becomes increasingly out of bounds to terrorists, they will inevitably turn to other less formal mechanisms.

7 Beheading the Hydra of terrorist financing therefore poses new and difficult challenges for many enforcement and regulatory agencies. No one has the answers to all these questions. We in Singapore do not pretend that we do. Like many other nations, Singapore has, in the aftermath of September 11, repeatedly reviewed our legislation and regulatory mechanisms and taken steps to strengthen our counter terrorism capacity. We have put in place regulations to give effect to Resolution 1373. We signed the International Convention on the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism in December 2001, and ratified it on 30 December last year. As a member of FATF, we are committed to enforcing FATF's recommendations on combating terrorist financing and money laundering. Singapore has volunteered to undertake an assessment of our anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing regime in mid-2003 as part of the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Financial Sector Assessment Programme (FSAP). Our security agencies have also taken tough counter terrorism measures domestically, which has resulted in the arrest of over 30 persons, mostly members of the clandestine group Jemaah Islamiyah, for terrorism-related activities.

8 We believe it is useful for officials who deal with counter terrorism in different countries to meet periodically to exchange views and share best practices. These are not occasions for states to be lectured on what they should or should not do, or to engage in theoretical debates, but opportunities for us to discuss, review and fine-tune our individual and collective capacities in counter terrorism. It is in this spirit that Singapore decided to co-host this counter terrorism finance workshop. We hope that the workshop will build upon the other meetings that have recently been held on the issue of terrorism finance, including the very successful Bali conference last month, and will further strengthen the global campaign against terrorists and their supporters.

9 Without further ado, let me once again welcome you to Singapore and wish you a fruitful discussion in the two days ahead.

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