Сrime prevention issues

Vienna, 23-27 April 2007

Thank you very much, Chairman.

I would like to congratulate you and the other members of the Bureau upon your election and to express the hope that under your guidance the session will be able to address the problems before it. The Commission tasked by member-states to act as the body heading the entire anticrime policy of the UN indeed faces many sizeable problems.

Among the priorities of major significance are fighting transnational organized crime, corruption and terrorism. Many of the areas of our joint work are already identified within the Strategy of the UNODC for the period of 2008-2011 which we still are to adopt.

In the report of the UNODC entitled "Development, security and justice for all" quite rightly we see noted and here I quote "Drug trafficking and abuse, crime, corruption and terrorism damage society and can threaten the integrity of states". In various instances these challenges indeed threaten international peace and security. The UN Security Council has already appropriately assessed the gravity of terrorists’ threats as well as the drug threat coming from the territory of Afghanistan.

In Resolution 1735 (2006) adopted last December an exhausted response has been given with regard to the existence of a link between narcotic drugs business and terrorism. With the initiative taken by Russia and active assistance of the UNODC a decision has been adopted to initiate international sanctions against those persons who are involved in illicit trafficking in Afghan narcotic substances, including them into the list of terrorists under the Committee of the Resolution 1267 of the UN Security Council.

Thereby the main body of the UN in matters of maintaining international peace and security has sent an unambiguous signal that work countering new criminal challenges and threats must be based on a comprehensive foundation. It is most satisfactory that this approach is coincident with the one presented by the Executive director of the UNODC Mr. Costa in his introductory statement while opening the session on April 23.

The Commission and the UNODC, of course, within the framework of their mandates must continue to address the growing interconnection between terrorism, narcotic drugs business and crime. And this is not only in its organized forms. This includes street crime, corruption, fraud as well as the illicit trafficking in precious metals and jewels, arms etc. The question really rises whether it isn’t in these very crafty interconnections of present-day criminal trends that the financial self-repayment of terrorism is to be found. That is how it has to pay for itself. It is indeed necessary to find an effective antidote.

The investigative function of the UNODC supported by the Commission could indeed become a very significant contribution to the implementation of the UN global antiterrorist strategy as adopted by the General Assembly in September 2006.

It would be useful to pursue an investigation of yet little-known financing channels fueling terrorism. Last November in Moscow there was a Global Forum on partnership of states and business in countering terrorism on part of the business community we heard the readiness to initiate this sort of investigation. Why shouldn’t this initiative be given support? And not only UNODC could become involved in this work as a coordinator, but also experts from the IMF, IBRD, and Interpol as well. This sort of the project could implement concrete example of partnership with business - which is the potential ally of states in the war on terrorism.

Partnership with business community should be included in the strategic priorities of our work including matters of promoting - along with other international structures such as for example UNIDO - advanced antiterrorist and anticriminal technologies, especially for the needs of the developing countries.

Closer cooperation with UNIDO could be useful also from the point of view of the eradication of the incentive causes of the terrorism. For example, by joint implementation of projects aimed at ensuring appropriate employment for population thereby lowering illegal migration which creates an environment which is conducive to the recruitment of terrorists.

The most important for us of the UN Global Antiterrorist Strategy is the battle for the minds and hearts of people. In order to prevent terrorism there is no greater and more important aim than depriving it of its ideological and social underpinnings. The Commission and UNODC are entirely capable and well-suited to prepare recommendations on possible contributions of leaders from the fields of culture and religion, scholars, the mass-media, the civil society as a whole, their contribution in the ideological war on terrorism. And this with the due to regard the specificities of various regions and countries.

In these days in Strasbourg the Council of Europe is holding a conference on precisely this topic. At the end of May here in Vienna upon the joint initiative of Russia and the USA under the OSCE aegis there will be a very highly-representative conference convened on the theme of partnership of states, business and civil society in conducting preventive action against terrorism. Why could the UNODC not relay this and take upon itself the duty to disseminate this interesting experience to other regions as well?

I believe that the idea of close work under UNODC aegis with international and regional structures (such as UNESCO, OSCE, EU, SOC, OAS, OCST, CIS, LAS) must be strengthened because it has strategic value.

Among the priorities of the UNODC is the battle against corruption. Corresponding legislative framework has already been laid. Now it’s important not just to extend and enlarge the scope of participants in this work but we must expeditiously and efficiently translate this work into our national legislations, and we must set up and improve organizational and institutional mechanisms to counter this phenomenon. Here we surely need experts’ assistance of the UNODC and it’s analytic expertise and best experience.

Such recommendations could also be useful in the Russian Federation where in February this year a special interagency working group chaired by the Russian President’s Aide was set up to prepare the proposals on the implementation of the provisions of the anticorruption conventions in the Russian legislation.

No less significant in stepping up the fight against corruption is assistance in training specialists, staging seminars to this end as well as other thematic activities.

Largely similar work is to be done with the regard to the UN Convention against Transnational Crime. We believe in this connection that the proposal to set up an informal "group of friends of the Convention" comprising interested member-states which is gaining support could be useful.

We believe that the work on developing legal framework enshrined in this Convention and it’s additional protocol with regard to trafficking in persons is promising. With interest we noted the global initiative of the UNODC in this regard. This problem is one which affects a large circle of states and calls for an adequate comprehensive response on a part of the international community. The development and implementation of the activities which have been identified within this framework must take place according to established UN procedures based first of almost on decisions agreed by member-states and the leading role taken by them in that regard.

We are ready to continue contributing in a constructive fashion into this efforts.

Our country is therefore in favor of building and strengthening the UN potential as a main instrument of forming a single anticrime strategy on the part of international society and community. We believe that it is important to develop an effective interaction for the states in countering these new threats and challenges.

We certainly appreciate highly the contribution of the UNODC in developing international anticrime cooperation. We are ready to continue our joint work to this priority way.

Once again we’d like to restate most firmly conviction that indeed we are going to be developing our fruitful cooperation with the UN member-states in waging war on these new challenges. And this both within the framework of the Commission as within other structures of the Organization. Allow me to express the hope that this current session will contribute to solving the problems which are standing before the world community in this area.

Thank you very much for your attention.