Russian and Finnish Customs Officers Discussing Collaboration in St. Petersburg

A two-day meeting of the Russian-Finnish interdepartmental working group on customs matters has begun in St. Petersburg today. According to the press department of the North-West Customs Office, the meeting is being attended by the working group's co-chairmen: Tommi Kivilaakso, the head of Finland's Eastern Customs Sector, and Vladimir Vyunov, the head of the North-West Customs Office.

The participants in the meeting are discussing collaboration between customs and passport control points in law enforcement. In particular, this concerns the necessity of an exchange of operational information between the two countries' customs authorities, and the transport of goods in the so-called 'risk' and 'covered' categories across the border. The meeting will also see discussions on the possibility of carrying out joint operations against counterfeiting and drug trafficking.

As well as looking at law enforcement activity, the participants will discuss issues related to the implementation of the Green Corridor project, which will see crossing points set up on the Russian-Finnish border where customs procedures are as simple as possible.