The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) of the Republic of Korea today inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to deepen their partnership in areas of mutual strategic interests, including safety, security and protection of the marine environment for international shipping. The MOU was signed at the sidelines of the 29th session of the International Maritime Organization's General Assembly in London.

Signed today by Mr Andrew Tan, MPA's Chief Executive and Mr Cho Seung-Hwan, MOF's Assistant Minister, the MOU further strengthens the two organisations' cooperative and friendly relationship formed through collegiate efforts in international forums such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP), the Co-operative Mechanism on Safety of Navigation and Environmental Protection in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore (Co-operative Mechanism) and related committees and working groups.

The areas of cooperation under the MOU between MPA and MOF included discussions on Port State Control and Flag State Control issues; cooperation in international forums such as the IMO and the ReCAAP; sharing of technical expertise through forums, workshops, seminars, conferences and informal networking; technical discussions on issues related to the improvement of international maritime safety standards; and cooperation on standards, capacity building and regional cooperation programmes in hydrography and oceanography in order to improve the safety of navigation and to protect the marine environment.

MPA's Chief Executive Mr Andrew Tan said, "The MOU reaffirms our excellent relations with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. It serves to strengthen our cooperation in areas of common interests, such as maritime safety, security, sustainability and technology, as well as facilitates the closer exchange of views."