see also: in November 2005 Press Releases:   CBP Air, Border Patrol Win 2005 USIC Awards   CBP Warns Consumers About Unsafe Toys and Counterfeit Products   Aduanas y Proteccion Fronteriza Recomiendan Tramitar con Tiempo Permiso I-94 Durante Epoca Decembrina   CBP Urges Mexican Holiday Travelers to Apply Early for I-94 Documents   U. S. Customs and Border Protection Officers Seize Nearly 2 Kilos of Cocaine at Newark Liberty International Airport   Calexico Port of Entry to Process I-94 Permits for Mexican Holiday Travelers Immediately   Puerto de Calexico Procesara Permisos I-94 de Manera Expedita a Viajeros Durante Epoca Navideña ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

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Washington, D.C. —U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Robert C. Bonner announced that Oman will participate in the Container Security Initiative (CSI) a program that will enable all maritime cargo destined for the U.S. through the port of Salalah to be targeted and pre-screened for terrorists and terrorist weapons.

“CSI is a key initiative designed to prevent global maritime cargo from being exploited by terrorist intent on inflicting harm in America and other nations of the world. Oman has taken steps to support the Container Security Initiative to safeguard global maritime trade,” said Commissioner Bonner. “The CSI security blanket continues to expand and strengthen as it encompasses the port of Salalah.”

The signing brings large-scale and sophisticated radiological detection equipment to identify nuclear material under the Energy Department’s MegaPorts Initiative at the port of Salalah.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Assistant Commissioner E. Keith Thomson, Office of International Affairs, and Lieutenant General Malik bin Sulaiman al-Ma'amari, Inspector General of the Royal Oman Police as well as Eleanor Melamed, Deputy Director, Second Line of Defense Program, Department of Energy (DOE), signed a declaration of principles on November 19, 2005.

In addition to Oman screening and targeting high-risk containers, the Port of Dubai also became CSI operational on March 26, 2005. CSI is continuing to expand to strategic locations around the world.

U.S. and Oman officials sign the CSI Declaration of Principles on November 19, 2005. Photo Credit: Christopher P. Quade, U.S. Department of State

CSI, the screening and targeting of containers at a foreign seaport, did not exist prior to the terrorist attacks of 2001. On average, every day about 25,000 seagoing containers are offloaded at America’s seaports. Commissioner Bonner, confirmed by Congress shortly after 9/11, made maritime cargo security one of his top priorities. The Container Security Initiative was launched in January 2002. It is a revolutionary and dynamic initiative to secure maritime cargo shipments against the terrorist threat.

Currently, there are 41 operational CSI ports in Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and North and South America. Approximately 75 percent of cargo containers headed to the U.S. originate in or are transshipped from CSI ports.

Under the Container Security Initiative, CBP has entered into bilateral partnerships to identify high-risk cargo containers before they are loaded on vessels destined for the United States. Today, a total of 24 additional administrations have committed to join CSI and are at various stages of implementation.

CSI is an accepted model of international cooperation to protect the global supply chain against terrorism. CBP’s goal is to have 50 operational CSI ports by the end of 2006. At that time, approximately 90 percent of all transatlantic and transpacific cargo imported into the United States will be subjected to pre-screening.

The World Customs Organization (WCO), the European Union (EU), and the G8, support CSI expansion and have adopted resolutions implementing CSI security measures introduced at ports throughout the world.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control, and protection of our Nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.