Thailand and Australia have announced plans to tighten their bilateral relationship to combat transnational drug trafficking.
Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam recently attended a policy meeting about bilateral cooperation in drug prevention and suppression in Sydney, Australia.
He took with him staff from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB), Justice Ministry, Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters and Customs Department.
The team yesterday visited the Australian Federal Police’s Eastern Command (AFP-EC) in the coastal city to exchange updates on their joint efforts to suppress drug networks.
Kirsty Schofield, assistant commander of AFP-EC, expressed her gratitude for the solid relations between the countries as they cooperate in trying to curb transnational crime and target drug syndicates. Of their many joint operations, one last year resulted in the seizure of 314.6 kilogrammes of heroin worth 940 million baht hidden inside 135 buckets of paint en route to Australia from Laem Chabang Port.
Meanwhile, a task force has laid down guidelines for their joint operations and cooperation in terms of human resources development, intelligence exchanges, and providing equipment to analyse evidence, she said.
So far this year the countries have arrested 44 suspects and seized 26.8 assets worth $A26.8 million, or around 670 million baht. More than 16 suspects are being tracked down by authorities, Ms Schofield said.
Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin said Thailand is committed to suppressing drug syndicates as shown by the results of previous operations.