BRUSSELS (AP) – Customs seized 116 tonnes of cocaine in the port of Antwerp in 2023, setting a record for the second year in a row, Belgian authorities said on Wednesday.
Demand for cocaine is growing rapidly across the European Union, and governments blame the drug trade for outbreaks of violence in major port cities like Antwerp, Rotterdam in the Netherlands, and Marseille in France.
The port of Antwerp has become the main gateway for Latin American cocaine cartels into the continent.
The quantity of cocaine seized in Europe’s second largest seaport rose from 110 tonnes in 2022, Belgian authorities said, adding that Colombia, Ecuador and Panama remain the top origin countries. State Secretary Aukje de Vries, the minister in charge of the customs authorities said the fight against cocaine smuggling “continues to require constant attention and investment”.
In Belgium, federal authorities say drug trafficking is penetrating society rapidly as foreign criminal organisations have built deep roots in the country, bringing along their violent and ruthless operations.
In the past four years, Antwerp has seen dozens of grenade attacks, fires and small bombs, many linked to gangs trying to carve up the thriving cocaine trade.
