Secretary Napolitano and Korean Minister of Justice Jae-Jin Kwon Announce Global Entry Agreement

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Washington— Secretary of HomelandSecurity Janet Napolitano today joined U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)Acting Commissioner David V. Aguilar and Republic of Korea Minster of JusticeJae-Jin Kwon at the Washington Dulles International Airport to announce areciprocal agreement for each nation’s trusted traveler programs—the U.S.Global Entry program and Korea Smart Entry Service.
“I am proud of the extraordinary bondbetween the United States and the Republic of Korea, and today’s agreementmarks another major step forward in our partnership,” said SecretaryNapolitano. “Global Entry and Korea’s Smart Entry Service are not just quick,easy, and efficient for travelers; they also help our customs authorities focuson those travelers we know less about, so that we can more effectively identifypotential threats and keep our borders and our countries secure.”
Korea is the third country to have afully reciprocal, publicly available trusted traveler program with the UnitedStates, joining the Netherlands and Canada, and is the first permanent trustedtraveler program the United States has in Asia. Global Entry kiosks and SmartEntry Service e-gates allow expedited clearance for pre-approved, low-risktravelers.
“International travel is fundamental toour nations’ economies,” said Acting Commissioner Aguilar. “With thisagreement, we are delighted to do our part in strengthening economic vitalitybetween our two nations while strengthening national security.”
Currently available at 25 U.S.international airports, Global Entry streamlines the screening process atairports for trusted travelers through biometric identification and reducesaverage wait times by 70 percent, with more than 75 percent of travelers usingGlobal Entry processed in under five minutes. More than a million trustedtravelers now receive Global Entry benefits, and these travelers have used itsautomated kiosks to expedite their entry more than 2.3 million times since theprogram’s inception.
The Global Entry program became apermanent initiative in January when President Obama signed an Executive Orderoutlining new initiatives to increase travel and tourism in the United Stateswhile encouraging job creation. The Global Entry program is another way DHS andCBP are helping to promote these efforts and stimulate our economy, whilemaintaining the highest standards of security.
For more information, visit GlobalEntry.
* Editor's note: Still photos of today'sevent can be downloaded from CBP's Flickr page.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection isthe unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security chargedwith the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at andbetween the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists andterrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.