SINGAPORE - The nine Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) vehicles seized by Hong Kong Customs at a port on Wednesday have been moved to the Customs' depot at the River Trade Terminal, which is a secured access-controlled area.

In a statement on Saturday night (Nov 26), Singapore's Ministry of Defence (Mindef) added that the shipping containers which were opened for inspection have also been resealed by the Hong Kong Customs.

The ministry said that an SAF team arrived in Hong Kong at 9pm on Friday and that earlier in the day, they met with representatives from Japanese-owned container shipping firm APL, which had transported the nine SAF vehicles.

Mindef said the SAF team met APL "to assess the situation and to ensure that the nine Terrex infantry carrier vehicles and associated equipment are sited in secure premises".

The vehicles were being shipped from Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan to Singapore but were intercepted during a routine inspection involving checks for explosives. It is not known why the ship had stopped by Hong Kong.