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Despite the increased controls, cocaine seizures in the great port of Antwerp are breaking records every year.
EU drug smugglers have become so "very creative" that the bloc's seaports must join forces to combat their ever-changing tactics, Belgian Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden told AFP.
The idea will be promoted on Wednesday when Verlinden, along with the European Commission, meet senior representatives from around 20 EU ports, Europol officials, other interior ministers and shipping leaders to launch the European Alliance of Ports.
The inauguration will take place in Antwerp, the Belgian port city that is the main gateway for cocaine traffic in Europe.
Despite increased controls, cocaine seizures in the great port of Antwerp break records every year. Last year, 116 tons of drugs were seized there. And Antwerp is often rocked by gang-related violence fighting over the hugely lucrative contraband.
"Traffickers are always very creative and that's our challenge, they don't pay attention to laws about working hours, right to privacy, borders. So we have to cooperate to be effective. We have to create this network to fight organized crime," Verlinden said.
The Port Alliance aims to crack down on both smuggling and the infiltration of ports by criminal networks.
The buy-in of the private sector is needed because the steps to be taken can affect legal trade, so a good "balance" must be found, said the Belgian minister.
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