Israeli Ports Implement CSI
September 26, 2007U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced on September 25 that the port of Haifa in Israel had become the 55th operational Container Security Initiative port to target and pre-screen maritime cargo containers destined for U.S. ports. The port of Ashdod in Israel became an operational CSI port earlier in September.
“Securing global trade is a major priority for CBP, so I am pleased to be partnering with Israel to expand the Container Security Initiative,” said W. Ralph Basham. “We are committed to using high-tech equipment and smarter, more secure containers to safeguard the supply chain, and realize that cooperation from our friends around the globe is our most potent weapon.”
U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Israel’s Customs Directorate cosigned the Declaration of Principles to bring CBP’s Container Security Initiative to the ports of Ashdod and Haifa on March 26, 2007.
CBP’s Container Security Initiative, launched after the terrorist attacks of 2001, is a cooperative effort with host country governments to identify and screen high-risk shipments before they leave participating ports. More than 80% of all cargo containers destined for U.S. shores originate in or are transshipped through 55 CSI ports in North, South and Central America, Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
The initiative seeks to:
- Identify high-risk containers. CBP uses automated targeting tools to identify containers that pose a potential risk for terrorism, based on advance information and strategic intelligence.
- Pre-screen and evaluate containers before they are shipped. Containers are screened as early in the supply chain as possible, generally at the port of departure.
- Use technology to pre-screen high-risk containers to ensure that screening can be done rapidly without slowing down the movement of trade. This technology includes large-scale x-ray and gamma ray machines and radiation detection devices.
