Aydiner: Turkey Is Ready To Undertake More Initiative In Fight Against Drug Smuggling

ISTANBUL - Turkish Police Department Chief Gokhan Aydiner said that Turkey was ready to undertake more initiative in fight against drug smuggling.
The conference on ''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.
Indicating that ''drug trafficking was a global problem and fight against it should also be global'', Aydiner said that ''international cooperation meant that countries should exchange intelligence with each other''.
Aydiner said that ''Turkey would be glad to contribute to training and regional proactive fight against drug smuggling'', adding that ''it also wanted to undertake a more active role on this issue''.
On the other hand, DEA Administrator Karen P. Tandy said that ''they cooperated with many countries in fight against drug trafficking''. Stating that DEA had offices in 60 countries, Tandy said that ''they are happy because Turkey was a powerful partner in fight against drug trafficking''.
(EÖ-ULG) 28.09.2004