Commissioner of Police Hoong Wee Teck was conferred the Bintang Bhayangkara Utama (Medal of Honour) by the Indonesian government yesterday.

The award was presented by Indonesian National Police (INP) chief H. Muhammad Tito Karnavian on behalf of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said in a statement.

The Medal of Honour is the highest award that the INP confers on an individual for outstanding contributions and cooperation.

The SPF statement said that Mr Hoong was recognised for his outstanding contributions to the maintenance of regional security.

Since he was appointed Commissioner of Police on Jan 6, 2015, Mr Hoong has actively fostered closer and stronger relations between the SPF and INP, the statement added.

"Both police forces enjoy an excellent relationship with close cooperation in the areas of investigation, information-sharing, and training, to facilitate the fight against transnational crimes and terrorism," the statement said.

Mr Hoong said he was deeply honoured to be conferred the award by the Indonesian government.

"This is a testimony to the strong working ties and friendship between the two police forces," he said.

"The SPF will continue to work closely with INP in fighting transnational crimes and terrorism," he added.