The notion of sea-borne terrorism in the Straits of Melaka should be buried because it is a myth that the scourages of piracy and terrorism are intertwined, a senior researcher said today.

Col (Rtd) Ramli Nik, from the Centre of Maritime Security and Diplomacy of Maritime Institute of Malaysia, said it is because terrorism has not spilled any blood in the straits.

“Piracy and terrorism which are widely discussed and linked to the strategic waterways of the Straits of Melaka are different matters altogether. The major difference is that piracy is pursued for short-term financial gains without political motive.

“Terrorism has a clear ideological agenda,” he said when presenting his paper at the International Maritime Conference entitled “Maintaining and Enhancing Security in the Straits of Melaka” jointly organised by HW Lima Sdn Bhd and the Royal Malaysian Navy here today.

Ramli said that from the Malaysian perspective, to combat transnational threat of terrorism there should be a political will to address the root causes of terrorism especially in the political and economic terms.

He said the littoral states of Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore have shown their competence and credibility to guarantee the straits’ security.

“Thereby foreign navies or coast guards have no role to play in this regard,” he said.