Joint anti-drug campaign on Mekong River begins

XISHUANGBANNA, Yunnan - The nameplate of the headquarters for a joint anti-drug campaign by China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand on the Mekong River was unveiled in Xishuangbanna on Friday.

This marked the formal start of the two-month-long action designed for safety of the Mekong, a major Southeast Asian trading route, where narcotics crimes continue to rage.

As one of the concrete steps to put into practice a joint statement on the river's safety by the four nations dated October 31, 2011, the campaign showed the authorities' strong will to jointly address drug crimes, according to representatives present at Friday's event.

Liaison officers from the four countries will be posted at the headquarters to share information and coordinate law enforcement efforts.

With the campaign, law enforcers will aim to crack a series of major cases of trans-national and trans-regional drug-related crimes, break major narcotics production chains and transport networks, and hunt drug-related fugitives.