Governments since the 1990s have recognised the importance of maritime territory and the economic value it has. Since then, offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) have become a procurement priority for Asian maritime nations alongside more traditional war-fighting ships such as corvettes and frigates. But Dr Collin Koh Swee Lean, a research fellow at RSIS, told AMR that depending on the government, there are varying levels of importance granted to maritime law enforcement agencies (MLEAs), and this differs between sub-regions. “We see more resources invested into MLEAs in Northeast Asia and to a lesser extent India in South Asia. But we still don’t witness a more radical shift in funding priorities towards MLEAs in SE Asia,” he said.