The European court of first instance in Luxembourg recently refused to shield three of the world's largest tobacco companies from legal action linked to cigarette smuggling. The move was initiated by the European Commission and backed by a majority of eu member states. Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds and Japan Tobacco have been accused of complicity in smuggling large quantities of cigarettes from eastern Europe into the eu. Hundreds of millions of euros are lost in tax and customs revenue each year as a result.
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