Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai on March 21 stressed that the fight against smuggling, fake goods and trade fraud has become complicated and requires drastic measures and better cooperation among relevant agencies.

Speaking at an online conference on activities to effectively deal with the problem this year, Hai asked the Central Steering Committee for Anti-Smuggling, Counterfeit Goods and Trade Fraud to guide agencies and localities to re-examine and address legal loopholes to prevent wrong doings.

He urged the Ministry of Industry and Trade to help the committee implement anti-smuggling measures at the grassroots level.

At the meeting, representatives discussed barriers to their activities, including lenient punishment and a shortage of supportive equipment and human resources.

The Ministry of Public Security forecast that this year would witness new crimes such as gold and foreign currency smuggled from neighbouring countries and coal and ore exports.

In 2011 alone, the ministry uncovered and cracked down on nearly 70,000 smuggling cases worth hundreds of billions of dong, and 6,100 cases of manufacturing and trading fake products and intellectual property infringements.

Also at the meeting, 123 teams and 133 individuals were presented with certificates of merit for their excellent performance last year.-VNA