By Daisy Ayliffe - 8th November 2005
The European Commission has hailed a “successful” EU customs crackdown on a €5 billion global market in counterfeit goods from East Asia.
Commission Vice-President Siim Kallas and EU customs chief Laszlo Kovacs praised operation “FAKE” as a victory for cross border EU cooperation.
“Counterfeit goods represent a large and sophisticated operation that seriously undermines the EU economy,” Kallas said on Tuesday.
The joint operation was the first to be coordinated in the new permanent technical infrastructure of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).
Kovacs explained that counterfeit products of Chinese origin were the target of operation “FAKE” that was carried out in May this year.
The operation involved over 250 customs officers across the EU and national authorities worked with the commission to exchange information in order to pinpoint flows of counterfeit goods.
Counterfeit objects seized ranged from cigarettes and matches to razors and dental equipment.
“I am sorry to say this enormous exercise highlights the extent of piracy,” Kovacs explained.
“Counterfeit goods undermine the health and security of citizens. More than 4.5 million fake food products were seized. They represent a serious danger to EU citizens.”
The EU customs chief conceded that it was difficult to put a price on the value of seized goods but said €5 bn worth of pirated goods are currently in circulation around the world.
Kovacs will travel to China next week to set up a joint commission on the issue.
“70 per cent of fake products come to the EU from China and I will be in Beijing to learn about their experiences and assess ways in which they can respond,” he said.
The commissioner praised Chinese authorities for their co-operation and said more would be done to step up third country collaboration.
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