Intelligence needs to be shared amongst nations to 'remain vigilant and proactive' against the 'threats' of terrorism, argued Sri Lanka's Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, whilst addressing the inauguration of BIMSTEC Joint Working Group on Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime.
He went to assert that the "rump" of the LTTE - a term frequently employed by several Sri Lankan political figures and media outlets - had been "providing arms training abroad to LTTE cadres in recent times".
"While most of the countries in the Bay of Bengal region have addressed these issues to some extent, the threats of terrorism, terrorist financing, illegal migration of persons and trafficking of drugs and other illegal substances still remains significant. As a result, it is very important that all our nations remain vigilant and proactive with regard to these threats," said Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.
"The most important tool that nations have at their disposal in countering these threats is Intelligence. For Intelligence to be more effective, however, it needs to be shared amongst nations. It is also very important to realize that few of the serious threats nations face in today’s environment are truly localised. Terrorism, human trafficking, narcotic drug smuggling and the illegal financial transactions that support all these activities are not confined to one nation but take place within several nations and across national borders."
"For example, when the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or LTTE, was engaging in ruthless terrorism activities in Sri Lanka, it raised funds abroad and used agents in various parts of the world to smuggle arms, ammunition and heavy weaponry to Sri Lanka through the sea. Even after the end of the war, the rump of the LTTE organization is still engaged in raising funds and trying to regroup in order to destabilize Sri Lanka through various means. These elements have even gone to the extent of providing arms training abroad to LTTE cadres in recent times. Because of the effective cooperation between Intelligence agencies, however, we were able to identify and stop these developments in their early stages. This is an example of how enhanced cooperation between Intelligence agencies is essential for maintaining national and regional security."