ISLAMABAD: The United States Homeland Security Investigations office (HSI) has donated 80 Toyota Hilux trucks, 160 body armor suits, five electronic hand-held chemical analysis units, cameras, binoculars, gloves and over 10,000 chemical test kits to Pakistan Customs.

With this technical help from the US, Pakistan Customs Service’s End Use Verification (EUV) project has formally been launched, which will help the Customs monitor the import and export of chemicals used both legally and illegally.

The EUV project will allow Pakistan Customs, a wing of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), to safely facilitate the entry of dual-use chemicals being imported for legitimate purposes, and also aid them in investigating and preventing the entry of chemicals intended for use in improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

“The partnership between the Pakistan Customs Service and HSI is based on genuine respect and the sense of a shared mission to keep citizens of Pakistan, the United States, and countries around the world safer by preventing the illicit movement of dangerous chemicals,” said US Ambassador Richard Olson while speaking at the launch of the Pakistan Customs’ EUV project.

The EUV project consists of 80 Pakistani teams that will conduct verification checks countrywide.

The World Customs Organization has also adopted this EUV project as a model to be replicated by customs administrations around the world.