Port of Salalah is the 43rd Port to Become Operational in CSI
According to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) press release, the port of Salalah, Oman became the 43rd Container Security Initiative (CSI) port to target and pre-screen maritime cargo containers destined for U.S. ports on March 7, 2006.
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CBP states that the U.S. and Oman signed a declaration of principles on November 19, 2005. (See ITT's Online Archives or 11/28/05 news, 05112815, for BP summary.)
According to the press release, representatives from the government of Oman, working with CBP officers based in Oman, will be responsible for screening any containers identified as a potential terrorist risk. CBP states that the port of Salalah will utilize large-scale and sophisticated radiological detection equipment to identify nuclear material under a provision with the U.S. Energy Department's MegaPorts Initiative.
CBP notes that its goal is to have 50 operational CSI ports by the end of 2006, which means that approximately 82% of all cargo imported into the U.S. will be subjected to pre-screening.
CBP has previously indicated that CSI will continue to expand to strategic locations around the world and notes that the World Customs Organization (WCO), the European Union (EU), and the Group of Eight Nations (G8) support CSI expansion and have adopted resolutions implementing CSI security measures introduced at ports throughout the world.
(See ITT's Online Archives or 12/20/05 news, 05122010, for BP summary of CBP's announcement of the 42nd operational port of Lisbon, Portugal.)
(See ITT's Online Archives or 05/31/05 and 06/20/05 news, 05053115 and 05062010, for BP summaries of a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing on CSI and C-TPAT, as well as an expert's testimony on these programs' weaknesses, respectively.)
CBP press release (dated 03/07/06) available at http://www.customs.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/press_releases/03072006_3.xml.