European Union launches "Ports Alliance" against drug trafficking

The EU on Wednesday launched a "European Ports Alliance" to harmonies methods in the fight against drug smuggling and to combat the hubs' infiltration by criminal groups. The initiative inaugurated at Belgium's Antwerp port which is the main gateway for cocaine into Europe, was attended by EU Interior Ministers and representatives from 16 of the bloc's ports, as well as sea transport organizations.

Annelies Verlinden, Belgian Minister for Interiors Affairs said "The objective of the ports alliance is to find tools to exchange good practices between ports and the authorities. For instance, creating a hotline, when there is something unusual that has been detected by one of the team members that can be notified, also on an anonymous basis, to make sure that we stop the criminals as soon as possible." In Antwerp, annual seizures keep increasing and authorities seized 116 tonnes of drug in 2023.