Tabaksgigant Philip Morris schikt EU-rechtszaak over sigarettensmokkel met 1 miljard euro (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Tobacco giant Philip Morris will pay the EU 1.25 billion dollars (1.0 billion euros) over 12 years following an agreement between the two sides on the fight against contraband and counterfeiting of cigarettes.

In return, the EU on Friday (9 July) dropped its legal case against the tobacco company.

This agreement was signed by the European Commission, Philip Morris International and 10 of the 25 Member States which had supported the Commission's legal action against the firm.

"We have ended all disputes between the parties in this area today. We look forward to moving forward with PMI in our fight to combat smuggling and counterfeit cigarettes effectively", budget Commissioner Michaele Schreyer said on Friday.

The Commission had accused Phillip Morris and other tobacco firms of colluding in the smuggling of cigarettes to evade EU customs and taxes.

"We both decided to move from a litigious approach to a collaborative approach and this agreement turns the page of any previous relationship we had in this litigious environment", André Calantzopoulos from Philip Morris International said.

The European Commission said that hundreds of millions of euro in unpaid taxes are lost through counterfeit cigarettes.

"Smuggling and counterfeit products cheat everyone: public budgets, consumers and legitimate businesses. And I am not talking here about individuals buying cigarettes across the border for their own consumption. I am talking about large scale and often organised illegal trade", Ms Schreyer said.

"The European Community and Member States are losing hundreds of millions, if not billions, of euros per year from smuggling and counterfeit cigarettes".

Mr Calantzopoulos said it is estimated that over one million counterfeit cigarette packs are sold in Europe every day.