ISTANBUL - Turkish Interior Minister Abdulkadir Aksu said that international community comprehended the importance of fight against ''transborder crimes''.
The conference ''International Initiative Against Smuggling of Drugs and Money Laundering,'' organized by Turkish Police Department and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) of the United States, started today at the Istanbul Hilton Hotel.
Making opening remarks of the conference, minister Aksu said that Turkey hosted a conference on fight against drug smuggling for the second time in the last two months.
Stating that those who committed crimes beyond borders use high technology, Aksu said that they noticed that crime organizations use more sophisticated methods as technology progress. Aksu stressed that Turkey has been exerting efforts to fight against drug smuggling for years by using the most advanced technology.
Stating that Turkish government aimed to strengthen infrastructure and institutionalize the fight against crimes, he noted that they expected security forces to be more professional in fight against drug trafficking.
''Crime is a universal concept. It does not have nationality, religion, race or border. Fight against drug smuggling should also be universal. Success achieved in this area should be perceived as a success of international community. Countries should support each other,'' he stressed.
Aksu said that Turkish government supported coordination between Turkish security department and departments of other countries, noting that they expected other countries to assume a similar approach.
Noting that Turkey's International Academy against Drugs and Organized Crime (TADOC) was established with the cooperation of the UN, Aksu said that Turkey shared its information and experience in fight against illicit drug trafficking and organized crimes with regional countries through TADOC.
Aksu said that Turkish police confiscated 5 tons of heroin in 2003 and 6.8 tons of heroin in 2004, noting that the increase in the amount of heroin seized by the police demonstrates efforts deployed by Turkish security forces and high tech techniques used against drug smugglers.
-CONFERENCE-
Nearly 100 people from Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Romania, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Britain, the United States and Uzbekistan are attending the conference.
(EÖ-ULG) 28.09.2004