IP/03/1565
Brussels, 18th November 2003

Customs: agreement initialled with United States ontransport security co-operation
An agreement with the United States to include transport security cooperation within the scope of the EU/US customs agreement was initialledby the European Commission’s Director General for Taxation and Customs
Union, Robert Verrue and US Ambassador to the EU Rockwell Schnabel on
18 November 2003. The agreement shall improve security on a reciprocal
basis for both the EU and the US. It will furthermore guarantee the rightbalance between trade facilitation and security by ensuring that generalcustoms control of legitimate trade takes due account of security concerns
and by creating equal levels and standards of controls for US and ECoperators.
European Commissioner for Taxation and Customs Frits Bolkestein welcomed theresult of the negotiations: "This is an important step forward. The EU and the US will
be working hand in hand to secure trade and to ensure equal conditions for the US
and the EU."The Commission has negotiated the agreement with the US on behalf of thethEuropean Community (EC) on the basis of the mandate it received on 18 March
2003 (see IP/03/399). The agreement complements US initiatives launched after theattacks of 11th September 2001 to establish international co-operation so as tointegrate security checks in normal customs controls before goods leave a country.
The reciprocal agreement ensures also the security of containers from all locations
that are imported into, transhipped through, or transit the EU and the US. The
Commission fully shares the concerns of the United States about improving security
and considers that the most effective means to meet these concerns is by cooperation at EC level with the US. The Community agreement thus prevents
differential treatment of Member States and trade diversion within the EU. Theagreement will also ensure that legitimate transatlantic trade is not hindered by theincreased security arrangements and that control standards are equalised for US
and EU operators. An important element of co-operation will be the availability ofadvance information to perform sophisticated targeting as implemented by the socalled 24 hours rule of the US and as proposed by the Commission in July
(IP/03/1100).
Once formally adopted (on the EU side by the Council of Ministers), this agreement
will expand the existing Agreement between the European Community and theUnited States of America on customs co-operation and mutual assistance incustoms matters, which was signed on 28 May 1997. The current agreement
focuses on classical customs co-operation while the expanded agreement covers
also co-operation in ensuring the security of the logistical chain in internationaltransport.

The Agreement establishes a working group that will elaborate the necessary
technical elements of expanded co-operation (see Annex). This working group is due
to begin its work very shortly.
For further information see the Europa website at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/taxation_customs/customs/information_notes/containers_en.htm

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ANNEX to the Agreement between the European Community and theUnited States of America on intensifying and broadening the CMAA toinclude co-operation on Container Security and Related Matters
The Working Group created under Paragraph 5 of the Agreement between theEuropean Community and the United States of America on intensifying andbroadening the CMAA to include co-operation on Container Security and Related
Matters will examine and make recommendations on issues including, but not limited
to, the following areas of co-operation between U.S. Customs and Border Protectionand Customs authorities in the European Community with a view to ensuring thatgeneral customs controls of international trade take due account of security
concerns:a) defining minimum standards, in particular in view of participating in CSI, andrecommending methods by which those standards may be metb) identifying and broadening the application of best practices concerning security
controls of international trade, especially those developed under CSIc) defining and establishing standards to the greatest extent practicable for theinformation required to identify high-risk shipments imported into, transhipped
through, or transiting the United States and the European Communityd) improving and establishing standards to the greatest extent practicable fortargeting and screening such high-risk shipments, to include informationexchange, the use of automated targeting systems, and the development ofminimum standards for inspection technologies and screening methodologiese) improving and establishing standards to the greatest extent practicable forindustry partnership-programs designed to improve supply chain security andfacilitate the movement of legitimate tradef) identifying any regulatory or legislative changes that would be necessary toimplement the recommendations of the Working Group andg) considering the type of documents and measures further implementing theintensified and broadened customs co-operation on the issues set out in thisAnnex.

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