Belgium and Ecuador strengthen police cooperation in fight against organised crime

The Port of Antwerp is an economic hub for Belgium and the European Union. But unfortunately, what makes it so interesting for the legal trade also makes it interesting for illegal trade. Last year, 110 tons of cocaine were seized in the Port of Antwerp, of which 56.4 tons came from Ecuador. About the same amount of cocaine that was destined to arrive in Antwerp was also seized in 2022 in the Ecuadorian ports, mainly the port of Guayaquil. The fight against drug crime, therefore, requires strong cooperation between the two countries.

That is why in Quito, in the presence of European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, Minister Annelies Verlinden signed a protocol on police cooperation with her Ecuadorian counterpart, Minister Juan Zapata. As such, both countries express their willingness to strengthening cooperation by organising training, sharing good practices, exchanging information and coordinating police investigations.

The new liaison officer of the Federal Police will follow up the implementation of the protocol for Belgium. He took up his functions at the beginning of the month to strengthen coordination and information-sharing between Belgium and Ecuador and Colombia.