WCO Secretary General meets US Secretary of Homeland Security

Brussels, 23 June 2012

Report

WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya met US Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano on 23 June 2012 for discussions on security-related issues at the end of her visit to Denmark, France, and Belgium respectively.

The Secretary General spoke about the WCO’s work on air cargo security and the update of the SAFE Framework of Standards, as well as other matters such as Programme Global Shield that addresses the illicit diversion of precursor chemicals used to manufacture improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

Secretary Napolitano provided a briefing on developments concerning the US National Strategy for Global Supply Chain Security and her decision to defer implementation by two years of the 100% scanning law on US-bound maritime cargo, as it was neither the most efficient nor cost effective way forward.

The WCO Secretary General welcomed Secretary Napolitano’s decision and remained of the firm belief that a layered, risk-based approach embodied in WCO instruments is the best way forward to secure international trade.