Brussels, 6 February 2023
Tomorrow, Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, will travel to Antwerp for an official visit of the port together with the Belgian Minister of the Interior, Institutional Reform and Democratic Renewal, Annelies Verlinden. They will be joined by the Europol Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle and European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) Director, Alexis Goosdeel.
The Commission is committed to tackling serious and organised crime and illegal drugs trafficking, as outlined in the EU Security Union Strategy, the EU Strategy to Tackle Organised crime and the EU Drugs Strategy 2021-2025. Antwerp is one of the main ports of entry and transit of cocaine in Europe. Only last year, Belgian authorities seized 110 tons of cocaine, almost all in the port of Antwerp.
Later this month, Commissioner Johansson will be visiting Ecuador and Colombia to strengthen cooperation with key third countries in the global fight against drugs trafficking.
Following the visit, Commissioner Johansson will hold a joint press conference with Minister Verlinden, Europol Executive Director, Catherine De Bolle, and EMCDDA Director Alexis Goosdeel at +/-16:00 CET, which will be broadcast live on EbS.
Source – EU Commission