Sarajevo – The Director of the Italian Customs and Monopolies Agency, Roberto Alesse, met in Rome with Zoran Tegeltija, Director General of the Indirect Taxation Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Together, they signed a joint declaration to enhance customs cooperation between Italy and the Western Balkan country.

Relations between the two nations are based on a long-standing tradition of friendship and mutual respect. Italy has consistently supported the Western Balkans' path towards EU integration, and to further this goal, the Italian Customs Agency has been engaged for over a year in a twinning project with its Bosnian counterpart to share best practices.

“There is great satisfaction with the results achieved so far in various sectors, including the updating of customs legislation and the improvement of risk analysis and management procedures. Our commitment has been exceptional, involving 30 experts over more than 300 days of fieldwork,” said Alesse, commenting on the twinning initiative.

Today, this collaboration has been further strengthened with the signing of a joint declaration between the two administrations. “This is an additional fundamental tool that will allow us to identify strategic intervention areas for future assistance and training programs. I am thinking, for example, of controlling the flow of goods and people to combat illicit trafficking or fighting counterfeiting,” Alesse explained. (9colonne)