The 24th Meeting of the Committee of Heads of Law Enforcement Units of the Council of Heads of Customs Services of the CIS took place in Kazan.
In Kazan, the 24th meeting of the Committee of Heads of Law Enforcement Units of the Council of Heads of Customs Services of the CIS (CHLEU) took place. The meeting was chaired by Oleg Gubaidulin, Deputy Head of the Federal Customs Service of Russia. Representatives of the customs services of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan participated in the event.
During the meeting, Oleg Gubaidulin was re-elected as the Chairman of CHLEU. New provisions on the Staff and Secretariat were approved, the candidacy of the Head of the Staff was agreed upon, and the Head of the Working Group on Information and Analytical Interaction and Counteraction to Offenses in the Internet Space was appointed.
The importance of conducting international operations in the field of law enforcement was emphasized, and the results of the work already carried out were summarized. In 2024, the customs authorities of CHLEU member countries conducted 8 operations using the «controlled delivery» method, resulting in the seizure of over 20 kg of drugs from illegal international circulation. Special attention was paid to combating the illegal import of precursors used in the production of synthetic drugs. As part of the international special customs operation «Barrier-2024» to combat the illegal movement of narcotic substances, psychotropic substances, and their precursors, over 3 tons of controlled substances were seized.
Taking into account the positive results of the operation, the Committee members determined further steps to develop practical cooperation in this direction. Intermediate results of the «Matrix» project, aimed at identifying prohibited objects transported in international mailings and express cargoes, were discussed in terms of information and analytical interaction. The parties also discussed issues related to combating economic crimes, including organizing cooperation to prevent the illegal movement of goods using the «false transit» scheme and dealing with high-tax goods.
Within the framework of cooperation on customs investigations and inquiries, issues of law enforcement practice in holding accountable for administrative offenses related to smuggling were discussed in the CIS member states. As a result of the meeting, agreements were reached on conducting activities in the field of personnel training and qualification improvement for law enforcement units of customs services in the CIS member states, as well as directions for the development of cooperation among canine specialists.