Asia-Europe customs talks

Asia-Europe customs talks

TOKYO (AFP): Customs officials from Asia and Europe will hold
a meeting, the first of its kind, in the Chinese city of Shenzhen
next month, a senior Japanese finance ministry official said
yesterday.

The June 21-22 meeting, to be held just after a gathering of
the World Customs Organization in neighboring Hong Kong, was
proposed by Japan during the first-ever summit of Asian and
European leaders in Bangkok two months ago, the official said.

The Shenzhen conference will focus on harmonizing customs
procedures and cracking down on weapons and drug trafficking, the
official said.

"These are two sides of the same coin," he said, adding that
harmonization and simplification of customs procedures alone
could lead to greater trafficking of weapons and drugs.

"We have to harmonize both aspects at a high level," the
official said.