Customs currently has 25 offices located at 19 Customs Attaché offices co-located at U.S. Embassies and six Senior Customs Representative offices co-located at U.S. Consulates. In a recent reorganization, the Foreign Operations Division at Headquarters, which is responsible for directing and supporting the activities of the foreign offices (Attaché), was merged with the Office of International Affairs. This change consolidated all international activities and functions so they reside within one organizational entity. To ensure overseas enforcement goals and initiatives are successfully achieved, close coordination and consultation with the Office of Investigations remains constant.

A critical asset
Customs Attachés, in addition to their primary mission of supporting domestic investigative offices, are responsible for liaison, training coordination, infrastructure building, and regulatory and compliance functions within their areas of responsibility. They employ an integrated strategy to deliver law enforcement expertise and modernization to our trading partners to combat transnational crime, money laundering, and trade fraud while facilitating lawful international trade.

Customs Attachés are, in the very real sense of the word, "ambassadors." While performing their duties, they are accountable to the U.S. Ambassador, and must be responsive to the respective Ministries of Foreign Affairs (State Department equivalent in foreign locations) and to their law enforcement counterparts.

Customs Attachés represent not only the Service, but also the United States government. According to Acting Commissioner Winwood, "Customs international offices are a critical asset in helping us fight crime in an increasingly borderless world."

The number of personnel assigned to an office generally depends upon the anticipated level of activity in a given region and the extent of coverage of the office's geographic area of responsibility.

An Attaché office is generally comprised of a Customs Attaché, an Assistant Customs Attaché, Customs Representative(s), administrative personnel, and Foreign Service Nationals (investigators and support staff), and was typically staffed mainly by personnel from the Office of Investigations. However, the composition of the Customs Attaché office has evolved and now includes other Customs experts, such as trade and import specialists, and intelligence analysts. The expertise of these personnel complements that of the Customs Investigator and brings a broader dimension to the overall mission of the Attaché office.

It is not all glamour as one might imagine, but for those men and women of the Customs Service who do accept an Attaché post, the long-term rewards and experience gained living abroad, working with foreign law enforcement counterparts, and interfacing with the members of the U.S. diplomatic corps, far outweigh any short-term inconveniences.

For more information on the Customs Attachés, please contact the Office of International Affairs, Operations Division, at 202-927-2691.

Customs investigative priorities are aligned with the International Crime Control Strategy. Customs foreign offices conduct complex criminal investigations in the following priority enforcement program areas: Trade fraud (intellectual property, forced labor, revenue protection, etc.); Smuggling (narcotics, merchandise, cargo theft, cultural property, etc.); Financial (international money laundering); Strategic (export violations, weapons and related dual-use technology); and Cybersmuggling (child pornography/sexual exploitation, computer forensics).

Spotlight on Bangkok The Customs Attaché office, Bangkok (CA/BK), was established in 1984 and has investigative, liaison, administrative, training, and coordination responsibility/ jurisdiction over 10 nations in Southeast Asia, part of Southwest Asia, and the Indian Sub-continent (approximately 3.6 million square miles): Thailand, Burma (Myanmar), Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Bhutan, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, and the Republic of the Maldives. This area is home to a diverse, multi-ethnic, and cultural population of over 1.4 billion people who speak over 100 distinct languages/dialects. The region is less reliant upon technology and machines to perform work related tasks, with manual or unskilled labor plentiful and inexpensive. There are currently four special agents, four foreign service nationals, and a staff assistant at the CA/BK. Due to the diversity of culture and governments, working in this region is often difficult and sometimes dangerous. On two occasions during the past three years, agents have been placed in jeopardy. One incident involved a grenade being thrown into an adjacent restaurant and the other involved a bomb in a hotel that agents had just departed twenty minutes prior to that attack. Agents have been caught in riots and civil disobedience. While U.S. Customs is mandated with broad enforcement and investigative authorities, that is not necessarily true of our counterparts. Thus, we rely on various foreign law enforcement agencies for cooperation in carrying out our mission. And, although collaboration and support from the foreign governments are generally good, several countries place severe restrictions on what we can do because of sovereignty concerns. Add to that language and cultural differences, and our ability to work on such sensitive matters as textile transshipment or child labor abuses is at times challenging. However, we remind ourselves that we have a very important mission to accomplish. We use our professionalism, personal skills, and diplomacy to face these challenges and to cultivate a close and cooperative working relationship with our foreign enforcement counterparts. Despite these obstacles, for FY 2000, the Customs Attaché in Bangkok has served 16 search warrants; cooperated in 9 Thailand seizures; affected 4,325 domestic seizures; responded to 83 collateral investigations; initiated 26 investigations; 2 special operations and 2 extraditions; provided intelligence; and supported training in 4 countries. Several of the nations within the region are major trading partners with the United States. The full range of commercial trade-related violations can be found to occur within the region. India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand engage in trade practices that have caused countervailing/anti-dumping duties to be imposed upon certain products they export. Because of their proximity to China, the Mekong River nations are prime targets for companies attempting to transship Chinese textiles. The CA/BK has seen a major increase in counterfeit textile visas from Cambodia and Sri Lanka. Products made by child or forced labor are also found within the region. Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) violations within the region are endemic. Because of the democratization of Vietnam and Cambodia and the liberalization of Laos, foreign investors are flocking to those nations to establish production facilities that will take advantage of the labor pool. As those investments increase, exports to the United States have also expanded with the rise in trade enforcement investigations. In addition, many of the countries in the region either have or are in the process of enacting money laundering legislation. The CA/BK was established at the request of the United States Embassy in Thailand. The request was made because of the major backlog of investigations into controlled commodities, smuggling of goods and drugs, and textile transshipments. Thailand is the center for export for many of the commercial shipping companies; exports from Laos, Burma, and Cambodia transit through Thailand. The men and women posted in the Customs Attaché office, Bangkok, are appreciated and have been recognized for their hard work and efforts. In the opening speech of the Asia Regional Forced Child Labor Symposium held in Bangkok in April 2001, U.S. Ambassador Richard E. Hechlinger stated, "One of the most prevalent problems in Asia is the use of exploitive labor, and the United States Customs Service is on the forefront to combat these unscrupulous people and to remove their selfish motives. This can only be accomplished through our cooperative efforts, and the U.S. Customs Attaché Bangkok is facilitating this goal by sponsoring this type of symposium." And, after a successful Internet pharmacy investigation, Royal Thai Police General Napadol commented, "Transinternational crime is endemic throughout the world, and with the cooperative efforts provided by the U.S. Customs Attaché Bangkok, we are in the position of being able to work together to meet our objectives. It is only through international cooperation that we can effectively fight crime and win."

The Foreign Operations Division at Headquarters manages the Attaché offices and consists of three geographic areas: Americas, Asia, and Europe/Africa. U.S. Customs Attaché offices: Bangkok, Beijing, Berlin, Bogota, Brussels, Caracas, London, Mexico City, Montevideo, Moscow, Ottawa, Panama City, Paris, Pretoria, Rome, Seoul, Singapore, Tokyo, Vienna. U.S. Customs Senior Representative offices: Frankfurt, Hermosillo, Hong Kong, Lyon, Monterrey, Tijuana. Anticipated new offices: Manila, New Delhi, San Paulo, Toronoto, Vancouver.

Notwithstanding the possible dangers and difficulties working in some foreign countries, our men and women remain professional and dedicated to accomplishing their mission. The international dimensions of transnational crime and the President's International Crime Control Strategy have given added impetus and attention to Customs foreign operations. - Mark Robinson, Director of Operations, Office of International Affairs