For Immediate Release:
Wednesday, February 22, 2006

WASHINGTON D.C - U.S. Representative Dan Boren has called on President Bush to halt a deal that would put management of key U.S. ports of entry in the hands of a government-controlled company from the United Arab Emirates.

 

“American ports should be under American control,” Boren said.  “Whether it’s an ally or an enemy, we can’t risk putting our homeland security in the hands of a foreign government.”

 

In acquiring the London-based Peninsular and Oriental Steam, Dubai-based Dubai Ports World is also acquiring the U.S. port contracts the British company controlled.  The major East Coast ports of New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Miami, as well as key Gulf Coast terminals including Houston and New Orleans, are all part of the deal.

 

“After countless pleas from members of both parties, I would like to see President Bush put a stop to this deal.  If that doesn’t happen, I will support legislation to put a stop to it.”

 

Boren expressed concern that the deal was quickly approved by the administration in secret without input from Congress or the governors of the states affected.

 

“My office has received more constituent calls on this issue in two days than any other issue since I took office,” Boren said.  “Oklahomans want this stopped.”

 

Though the United Arab Emirates is considered an ally in the global war on terrorism – and even captured the chief of al Qaeda’s naval operations in 2002 – Boren pointed to the country’s ties to terrorists as cause for concern.  Two of the 9/11 hijackers came from the UAE and some of the money used to finance the plot was laundered through UAE banks.

 

“We know our ports of entry have vulnerabilities and exposing those – especially to a country with known ties to terrorists – is a chance we can’t take,” he said.

 

Boren noted that this incident should serve as a wake-up call to the administration and Congress to evaluate security at all of our ports of entry.  The federal government currently has the ability to scan only 5 to 6 percent of the containers entering the United States.

 

“The volume of drugs alone flowing into the country shows it’s not hard to sneak something in,” Boren said.  “As we devote vast resources to fight terror abroad, we must not forget our homeland security.”

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