The delegation of the State Customs Service of Turkmenistan headed by the Deputy Chairman of the Service took part in the 141st/142nd World Customs Organization (WCO) Council Meeting, which were held from 22 to 24 June 2023 at the WCO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
The Council, the highest decision-making body of the Organization, regularly conducts annual sessions to discuss various Customs issues affecting all administrations and offer timely and appropriate solutions that member countries may employ. This year is especially significant as this marks the election for the position of the Secretary General and Chairperson of the Council.
At the meeting of the World Customs Organization Council, the Directors General of Customs elected Mr. Ian Saunders from the United States as the new WCO Secretary General for a five-year term. They also elected Mr. Edward Kieswetter, Commissioner of the South African Revenue Service, as the Chairperson of the WCO Council.
Turkmenistan joined the World Customs Organization in 1993, which today has 185 members, three-quarters of which are developing countries, are responsible for managing more than 98% of world trade.
Cooperation between Turkmenistan and the World Customs Organization is developing. In 2021 and 2023, Turkmenistan became a contracting party to two international conventions administered by the Council. These are the Revised Kyoto Convention on the Simplification and Harmonization of Customs Procedures and the Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System.
The State Customs Service of Turkmenistan.
