ASEAN vows to rein illegal wildlife trade

Annual Asian traffic of $23 billion is often embedded in legitimate activities

Ministers from the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations have agreed to strengthen the fight against the multibillion-dollar illegal wildlife trade, with conservation groups and analysts welcoming what they say is an important step to stem major crimes.

The member states - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam - pledged to boost global and regional wildlife trade policy, tighten law enforcement and curb poaching and wildlife cybercrime.