Published: 02 Dec 2013 23:13:05 PST
(Wednesday, November 27, 2013)
Washington — U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced today that a Customs Mutual Assistance Agreement was signed between the United States and the Kingdom of Morocco. The bilateral agreement is a valuable tool for CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement in cooperation with the Moroccan Administration of Customs and Indirect Taxes of the Ministry of Economy and Finance to prevent, repress, and, investigate customs offenses. The agreement, signed on November 21, marks a significant milestone in collaboration between the two countries.
CMAAs provide for mutual assistance to ensure the accurate assessment of customs duties and taxes, and in efforts to combat illicit cross-border activities to include contraband smuggling, financial crimes such as customs fraud and money laundering, and international terrorism.
CBP and ICE have used bilateral CMAAs as a valuable part of law enforcement efforts. These agreements provide a legal framework for information sharing and cooperation between customs administrations as they combat transnational crime and endeavor to protect their respective national frontiers.
With this agreement, CBP and ICE have 68 CMAAs with other Customs administrations.