ST Kinetics has been manufacturing and supplying arms to our armed forces and foreign militaries for decades ("Let's not profit from arms sales" by Mr Muhammad Faris Joraimi; Forum Online, Oct 6).

This stemmed from an urgent need to make Singapore more self-reliant in arms procurement for our own defence at the outset of independence, most certainly not for "the accumulation of wealth from the wanton slaughter of human beings and the destruction of whole communities".

Besides, is helping the nations of the free world keep evil and terror at bay, or drawing a regular income to better protect our pound of flesh for peace dividends, morally dubious?

No one can guarantee that weapons circulating in the market - including in war zones - will not fall into the wrong hands, just as no one can vouch that a lone-wolf terrorist will not use a fruit knife to commit a heinous act.

Peace-loving nations, like Singapore, can only do their utmost not to supply arms to rogue states and terrorist organisations like the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Toh Cheng Seong