Belgium’s Antwerp has one of Europe’s largest ports and has long been a target for the world’s drug traffickers.
Recently, however, the port has not been as affected.
Last month, customs said that the number of cocaine seizures had been halved, and this after tougher controls, British reports The Guardian.
The mayor sounds the alarm
However, the success in Antwerp risks having consequences for other European ports.
Now Oslo’s mayor Anne Lindboe is sounding the alarm that the smugglers have started targeting Oslo’s harbor instead.
She says that narcotics worth the equivalent of eight billion Swedish kronor have been smuggled through the port.
– It seems that Oslo’s harbor is becoming a popular target for criminal gangs, says the city’s mayor Anne Lindboe to NRK.
Warns Sweden
The mayor believes that the port is poorly protected, and is supported by Karin Tanderø Schaug from the customs workers’ union.
According to Tanderø Schaug, customs workers share equipment with other nearby ports.
– This fight is so important. We cannot afford to underestimate the importance of having control over our borders, she says, adding that the amount of cocaine in Oslo is “alarming”.
– The criminals change their habits when the controls in Antwerp are strengthened. Norway can become a country to be smuggled to, and the same applies to Sweden.
“Crush the Gangs”
The Norwegian government wants the customs to be strengthened with the equivalent of 116 million Swedish kronor.
The country’s Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum:
– We want to crush the criminal gangs, and then we have to take the money and stop the flow of drugs into Norway.
– This is money for equipment and increased staffing. It will help us update existing scanners, and will be able to help purchase new equipment where there is a need.