Posted by the Office of International Affairs
Today, DHS Assistant Secretary for International Affairs Alan Bersin and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Commissioner Thomas Winkowski met with Turkish Ministry of Customs and Trade Under Secretary Ziya Altunyaldiz, to discuss efforts to secure and facilitate legitimate trade and travel. This meeting was a follow up to Secretary Janet Napolitano’s trip to Turkey in October 2012.
During the meeting, the DHS and Turkish representatives discussed how customs agencies can partner with industry, through programs such as the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, to identify high risk cargo early in the shipment process and share best practices for training customs officers. DHS and the Turkish Ministry of Customs and Trade are working together to translate these discussions into new forms of direct operational cooperation in order to improve the security and resilience of the global supply chain.
Last fall, Secretary Napolitano traveled to Ankara where she met with Minister Yazici in addition to Deputy Prime Minister Atalay, Maritime, and Communications Minister Yidirim, and Interior Minister Sahin to discuss the Department’s collaboration with international partners on enhancing information sharing and combating transnational crime, while strengthening economic ties.