HO CHI MINH CITY, May 31 (Xinhua) -- A three-day National Border Liaison Office (BLO) Consultation began in Vietnam's southern Ba Ria Vung Tau province on Wednesday, discussing measures to counter transnational organized crime as part of the Partnership against Transnational-crime through Regional Organized Law-enforcement (PATROL).
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has implemented the PATROL initiative in Vietnam and neighboring countries since 2010, state-run Vietnam News Agency reported. Thanks to the PATROL, Vietnam has significantly extended international cooperation and information exchange on drug, human, animal trafficking, environmental crime and illegal immigration via the BLO system.
Sixteen BLOs are operating in 11 Vietnamese provinces, namely An Giang, Tay Ninh, Quang Tri, Ha Tinh, Nghe An, Dien Bien, Son La, Lao Cai, Ha Giang, Lang Son, and Quang Ninh.
They asked the UNODC to supplement equipment, such as drug quick-test kits and thermal binoculars, and to open more training courses on foreign languages and occupational skills.
Since the beginning of 2016, liaison among BLOs has helped relevant agencies detect 1,230 drug smuggling cases and 74 cases of illegal trade of wildlife animals and forestry products.
