US-Bound Cargo to Be Screened

AP | 6/25/02 | JEANNINE AVERSA

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WASHINGTON, Jun 25, 2002 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- U.S. inspectors will screen U.S.-bound cargo containers before they leave Rotterdam's seaport, part of an effort to prevent terrorists from smuggling nuclear and other weapons into this country, the Customs Service said Tuesday.

The agreement with the Netherlands government allows U.S. customs inspectors to be stationed for the first time at that port, one of the busiest in the world.

It marks the third agreement of its kind and the first in Europe that customs has entered into with the hope of improving cargo security at the world's seaports. That took on heightened importance after the Sept. 11 attacks in New York and Washington.

The agreement will "provide a significant measure of security for the Netherlands, the United States and the global trading system as a whole," said Customs Commissioner Robert Bonner.

Bonner has negotiated similar deals with Canada and Singapore and is working on others. A customs official expressed optimism that deals could be announced later this week involving the seaports in Antwerp, Belgium, and Le Havre, France.

Since Sept. 11, customs has shifted its primary mission from detecting smuggled narcotics to stopping terrorists and weapons from getting into the country.

President Bush went Monday to New York Harbor where he called attention to the need to prevent dangerous cargo from slipping through the nation's ports. He said his proposed Cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security would unite several federal agencies now responsible for that.

With roughly 6 million cargo containers entering U.S. seaports each year, Bonner says it is critically important to ensure that terrorists don't use containers to smuggle themselves or their weapons into the country.

Last year, roughly 291,000 cargo containers entered the United States from Rotterdam's port, Customs said.

Under Tuesday's agreement, Dutch customs officers will share with onsite U.S. customs officers the advance shipping manifests for cargo destined for the United States. Equipped with computers, those U.S. officers will run the information through a U.S. customs data base to identify containers that pose a potential risk, said Customs spokesman Dean Boyd.

A joint determination will be made whether a container should be physically inspected or be scanned by detection technology, Boyd said. The Dutch would be responsible for conducting a physical inspection and would be assisted by U.S. customs officers, he said.

Boyd said Customs hopes to place some U.S. officers at the Rotterdam seaport in a few months. He said the agreement didn't specify an exact date.

"Dutch customs is aware of the importance of cooperation with U.S. customs in gaining better control of the transportation of goods meant for terrorist purposes," said Deputy Dutch Customs Commissioner Helma Nepperus.

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On the Net: Customs Service: http://www.customs.gov

By JEANNINE AVERSA Associated Press Writer

Copyright 2002 Associated Press, All rights reserved