Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean coast guard personnel take part in a joint maritime security exercise in the Riau Islands. (Indonesian Coast Guard)
On August 12, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore concluded a three-day maritime security exercise under the Tripartite Coast Guard Cooperation initiative in the Riau Islands, Indonesia, aimed at strengthening cooperation and safety in regional waterways.
The exercise involved Indonesia’s Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla), the Singapore Police Coast Guard (SPCG) and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA). It included joint maritime security drills, including a Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) exercise led by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), following the arrival of the SPCG vessel White Tip Shark and Malaysia’s KM Sibuan 2224 at the Bakamla base in Batam.
Bakamla Chief Vice Admiral Irvansyah said the exercise forms part of INSIMA, a trilateral initiative between Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia aimed at strengthening maritime security cooperation among the three neighbouring countries. The exercise focused on key maritime corridors, including the Malacca Strait, Singapore Strait, Riau Islands and Natuna Sea.
He added that future exercises could involve other ASEAN members, including the Philippines and Vietnam, although wider participation would require greater coordination, planning and funding, still, he added, starting with neighbouring countries provides a practical foundation for gradually expanding regional maritime cooperation.
MMEA Director General Admiral Haji Mohd Rosli Abdullah said the exercise allowed the three agencies to exchange information, operational experience and best practices while strengthening professional networks. Meanwhile, SPCG Commander SAC Ang Eng Seng said the cooperation reflected the close maritime ties between the three countries and could contribute to a safer regional maritime environment.
The exercise comes as Southeast Asian states face shared maritime security challenges, including drug smuggling, human trafficking and other transnational crimes that exploit busy shipping routes and jurisdictional boundaries.
Strategically, the drill strengthens ASEAN’s maritime defence architecture by building operational coordination at the sub-regional level. Beyond countering transnational crime, regular coast guard drills can improve maritime domain awareness, information-sharing and interoperability, allowing neighbouring states to detect and respond to threats across jurisdictional boundaries more effectively.
The initiative also provides a practical foundation for expanding cooperation to other ASEAN members and complements existing ASEAN-led defence mechanisms. Over time, such cooperation could strengthen the region’s collective maritime resilience and readiness while supporting ASEAN’s broader objective of maintaining secure and stable strategic waterways.
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