Dubai: A US Coast Guard officer who liaises between the American naval forces and commercial shipping in the Gulf yesterday said DP World's professional record in managing ports should dispel security concerns about its takeover of P&O assets.
"Based on my Middle East exposure, I can say that DP World is a professionally run organisation. Although government-owned, it lets the professionals do their job," said Donald Bunn, a Coast Guard captain based at the US navy's Maritime Liaison Office (Marlo) in Bahrain.
"What about the US military vessels? What ports do they go to and who operates them?" Bunn asked.
Recently, at the opening of a DP World-managed oil terminal in Djibouti, a US warship hosted a reception ceremony.
Bunn suggested that DP World could in fact turn out to be a better port operator than others.
"DP World has offered concessions that would not be available from any other company. This is indicative of their willingness to be cooperative on security matters," he told Gulf News at a maritime conference in Dubai.
Industry observers point out that that port operators themselves are not responsible for port security. They only comply with the security measures put in place by government security agencies.
Joe Hurley, a partner with Australia-based marine law firm Ebsworth & Ebsworth, told Gulf News there were no security concerns related to DP World's takeover of P&O assets in Australia.
