Between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2025, joint actions conducted under the EU Council's Law Enforcement Working Party (Customs) (LEWP-C) resulted in the seizure of 134.5 tonnes of cocaine, 13.1 tonnes of cannabis, 18 million cigarettes, and €9.8 million in undeclared cash. The figures were released by the Cyprus Department of Customs in a summary of the 12th Action Plan of the working party.
Cyprus chairs the working party
Cyprus assumed the presidency of the LEWP-C in January 2025, coinciding with the completion of the 12th Action Plan. On its own initiative, the Cypriot presidency compiled a summary of the plan's results and produced a one-page data factsheet, described as the first of its kind in the working party's history.
Ten actions across ten thematic areas
The 12th Action Plan comprised ten separate actions, each led by a different member state. These covered the combating of cash laundering (France), rapid exchange of risk information on intellectual property violations in bulk shipments (Croatia), customs financial fraud including under-declaration of taxable value (Hungary), illegal production and smuggling of tobacco products (Ireland), illegal cannabis production and trafficking (Ireland), maritime cocaine trafficking (Spain), customs and tax fraud in e-commerce (Belgium), strategic trade control enforcement through the STENFOR forum (Germany), cooperation between customs and the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) (Spain), and an evaluation of the customs enforcement cooperation strategy and its contribution to EU internal security (Hungary).
Upon completing each action, the leading country submitted a final report to the LEWP-C with its key results and conclusions. The consolidation of all ten reports into a single graphic factsheet was carried out under the Cypriot presidency.
