U.S. and EU agree to update efforts to cooperate in container security by arrangements to improve surveillance of containerized cargo such as by information exchange networks, by setting minimum security requirements for participating European seaports, and by identifying best ways to prevent terrorist attacks
On November 11, 2004, the U.S. and the European Union (EU) agreed on the first measures to improve the security of maritime container transport. They are based on the EU-U.S. Customs Agreement which the parties had signed on April 22, 2004, and broaden the 1997 Agreement on Customs Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in Customs Matters. See O.J. of European Union (L 304) 32, 30 Sept. 2004. See also 2004 International Law Update 158.
The Customs Agreement seeks to improve security for both parties by ensuring (1) that customs procedures and legitimate trade take security concerns into account, and (2) that equal standards apply to both U.S. and EU transport companies. A Working Group is detailing the necessary operational elements of expanded cooperation, such as the minimum standards for the Container Security Initiative (CSI) and common risk criteria.
The CSI is a program of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. It aims to increase the security of containers that foreign entities are shipping to the U.S. by identifying high-risk shipments through information exchange and detection technology. See website of CSI at www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/enforcement/international_activities/csi.
The EC-US Joint Customs Co-operation Committee has recently approved the Working Group's proposals. These include, inter alia, the creation of an information exchange network, the setting of minimum requirements for all European ports willing to take part in the CSI, and the identification of the best ways to prevent terrorist threats. The Committee also set up a pilot project for shipments that pass over both the U.S. and the EU to test the feasibility of exchanging cargo information.
The relevant government organizations for both parties are, respectively, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the EC Commission's Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union.
Citation: European Union in U.S. [EU Representative Office] news release No. 161/04 (Nov. 15, 2004) various other documents relating to Agreement with United States of America on intensified customs cooperation regarding Container Security, including Agreement itself and Background Note, are available on website of European Commission at “http://europa.eu.int” in Section on “Customs Union.” Text of 1997 Agreement between European Community and United States of America on Customs Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in Customs Matters is reprinted in 2004 O.J. of European Communities (L 222) 16, 12 August 1997, and on website of European Union in U.S. at “www.eurunion.org.”
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