GENEVA - Representatives from 174 countries are drafting at treaty on combating tobacco smuggling, which costs governments up to $50 billion in tax revenue annually, the Associated Press reports.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has been helping to negotiate a treaty that would crack down in the illegal tobacco trade. Diplomats will meet later this year in South Korea to discuss the draft treaty. Some 19 nations, including Argentina, Indonesia, Switzerland and the United States, are keeping out of the meetings, which means they won??t be signing the treaty.

"A good part of the protocol is already agreed," said Dr. Haik Nikogosian with WHO. Still to be hammered out is duty free and online sales, tracking the supply chain and alleged smuggler extradition. Once resolved, a draft will be voted on during the Seoul meting in November.

A key component will be a tracking system for all cigarette packages to help customs officials trace the origin of each pack. This will enable law enforcement to figure out how the cigarettes or tobacco products arrived at their destination.

Ten percent of worldwide cigarette sales are from smuggled products. Smuggling tobacco has become more profitable as nations raise duties and taxes on tobacco products.

The United States has signed the 2005 Framework Convention on Tobacco Control ?" the framework for the draft treaty ?" but has yet to ratify it. In recent years, cigarette smuggling has increased in the United States.