Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department and the Customs Department of Thailand pledge to strengthen cooperation in fighting transnational customs crimes by signing a Customs Co-operative Arrangement today (March 1).
The Commissioner of Hong Kong Customs, Mr Timothy Tong, and the Director-General of Thai Customs, Dr. Sathit Limpongpan, represented their respective Administrations in the signing ceremony.
"It is always the common wish of our two Administrations to elevate our friendly relationship to new platforms, and the Co-operative Arrangement is the embodiment of such wish," Mr Tong said, noting that the attach?office of Thai Customs has been established in Hong Kong for over 40 years.
Signing of the Co-operative Arrangement marked the will and commitment of both Administrations to co-operate even more closely in such areas as fighting against smuggling and drug trafficking and protecting intellectual property rights through arrangements of mutual administrative assistance.
So far, Hong Kong Customs has signed Customs Cooperative Arrangements with the General Customs Administration of the People's Republic of China (the Mainland) and nine other overseas Customs Administrations, namely New Zealand Customs Department, Australian Customs Service, Her Majesty's Customs and Excise of the United Kingdom, United States Customs Service, French Customs Administration, Belgian Customs and Excise Administration, Department of National Revenue of Canada, Central Board of Excise and Customs of the Republic of India and Korea Customs Service of the Republic of Korea .
Ends/Wednesday, March 1, 2006