EU seeks container pact with U.S.

BRUSSELS : The European Union is to seek an agreement with the United States to cooperate on measures to prevent guerrillas using transport containers to launch attacks, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

U.S. Customs estimates that 90 percent of the world's cargo travels by container and fears the large metal boxes could be used to smuggle bombs or weapons into the country.

EU foreign ministers asked the Commission, the bloc's executive arm, to negotiate a deal with Washington.

The Commission has already launched legal action against EU governments for agreeing similar bilateral anti-terror measures with the United States.

"The security concerns of both the U.S. and the EU will best be addressed by reciprocal cooperation rather than by unilateral actions which can impact on trade and cause competitive distortions," Frits Bolkestein, the EU commissioner in charge of customs issues, said. -- AFP